Illinois can learn from other programs on how to prepare residents facing a benefits cliff, where low-income families are penalized for advancing in their careers.
Non-tipped workers will see their hourly wage hit $14 an hour while tipped employees will collect $8.40 thanks to the next minimum wage hike on January 1, 2024.
The minimum wage for residents working in Chicago and Cook County is increasing July 1. Research suggests the rise in wage rates will benefit the working Chicagoans at the expense of the city’s vulnerable unemployed.
Illinois’ second minimum wage increase this year is part of a plan to hit $15 an hour in 2025. Small businesses face tough decisions on cutting staff or raising prices.
As Pritzker’s minimum wage bill advances to the House, the new administration’s first major victory may come with a $1.1 billion price tag, courtesy of Illinois taxpayers.
Growth in administrative bloat is sucking up money that would otherwise go toward the classroom and tuition grants for low-income students in Illinois’ higher education system.
Illinois’ tax code stands in the way of the state’s economic competitiveness. The combination of high tax burdens and a poor tax structure contributes to the loss of jobs and investment to other states. From a place of former economic dominance, Illinois now ranks 45th in gross state product (GSP) growth over the past decade...