Gov. J.B. Pritzker banned ‘dark money’ in Illinois’ judicial elections after record spending unseated a longtime Madigan ally from the Illinois Supreme Court. Voters will decide more high court vacancies soon.
Illinois politicians used Madigan’s teachings – avoid messy democracy and disenfranchise taxpayers – by again waiting until the last minute to pass major legislation. Good things rarely grow in the dark.
Asking Illinoisans to pay more in taxes to receive less in services has been the trend in state government for the past decade, driven by the ever-growing cost of Illinois’ worst-in-the-nation pension crisis.
Illinois would have lost an additional 10,577 seniors from 2012 to 2018 if outmigration were as severe as in Connecticut, the last state to enact a progressive income tax.
Occupational licensing requirements present one of the steepest barriers to low-income Illinoisans starting careers in beauty services. Illinois requires anyone seeking to become a barber, cosmetologist, nail technician or hair braider to obtain a state license, essentially a permission slip to work. Unlike 45 other states, Illinois offers only one pathway to licensure for each...