Illinois state lawmakers must be super speed readers, because who would vote on something they hadn’t read? They were given an average of 67 seconds per page to read the past nine state budgets, but last year received only 26 seconds per page.
Stacy Davis Gates and her slate of progressive Chicago Teachers Union leaders won reelection on May 16. Illinoisans can expect the union to pursue more money, more power and more radical policies during her continued tenure as union president.
Illinois lawmakers could still pass expensive changes to newer state worker pensions using a “gut and replace” maneuver. The proposal would cost taxpayers over $76 billion by 2050.
Tens of thousands of homeschool and private school families and other Illinoisans have filed opposition to House Bill 2827 – dubbed the ‘Homeschool Act.’ The bill is stalled on the House floor and poised for defeat.
A federal bill is cause for hope for 15,000 low-income Illinois students who lost their private school scholarships in 2023. That’s when teachers unions got state lawmakers to kill the Invest in Kids program.
“A bill like this also meets a huge need economically. I have taught so many African-American women who were able to take this craft of hair braiding and make an honest living for themselves and for their families."
Illinois state lawmakers are considering a statewide payroll tax that would raise business costs, reduce wages and kill jobs. Workers are already taxed on their income, meaning this would tax their wages twice.
Illinois companies announced 1,023 mass layoffs in April, with more than half from business closures. One-fifth of Illinois job cuts resulted from a lost contract to manage McCormick Place in Chicago.
Since 2020, 84% of Illinois communities have lost population. Small towns were hit hardest by population declines in 2024, while Chicago’s migrant crisis helped offset people choosing to leave.
Illinois lawmakers are looking to expand sales taxes to include things such as streaming services, gym memberships, vehicle repairs, hair care and other services to bail out Chicago’s failing transit systems and put more money in government budgets.
The Illinois Revenue Alliance, a group which includes the Chicago Teachers Union, has released a proposal to impose nine tax increases and hike statewide taxes by $7.3 billion annually. Some of CTU’s ideas are likely illegal and tax all Illinoisans for the union’s excesses.
Research shows financial literacy boosts economic opportunity. The success of the University of Chicago’s FinEDge program shows it should be expanded.