More Illinoisans fled for other states from July 2021-July 2022 than during any other year in recorded history, driving the state’s record population decline.

New Census Bureau data shows people moving out of Illinois continues to drive the state’s population decline. So many moved away in the year before July 2022, it was almost like Rockford disappearing.

Illinois’ metro areas already face unemployment problems, with some of the nation’s worst rates. They could be hit harder by a recession than other places in the nation.

The latest job numbers show Illinois continues struggling to recover pandemic job losses, a bad sign for its lagging economy as recession fears rise.

Illinois’ lagging pandemic recovery continued across its cities in July. Only 1 metropolitan area has recovered from the pandemic.

Only Bloomington has recouped early 2020 job losses, which is bad news for Illinois’ lagging economy as recession fears increase.