State spending grew 25 percent faster than Illinoisans' personal income from 2005-2015.

The Land of Lincoln's addiction to regressive "sin taxes" burns more and more of Illinoisans' incomes.

Spending has consistently outpaced state tax revenues in Illinois for more than a decade. To avoid future tax hikes, Illinois must impose real fiscal discipline on state lawmakers.

With statewide elections in November, the 2018 forecast calls for gridlock.

While effective property tax rates might be on the decline in some communities, census data show Illinois families are seeing a larger share of their household budgets eaten up by property tax bills.