The Chicago Teachers Union funneled at least $200,000 into the ballot question Mayor Brandon Johnson claims will raise taxes to help the homeless. With no plan on how the money will reduce homelessness, it could become a slush fund for his CTU friends.
This edition of The Policy Shop is by policy analyst Hannah Schmid. “We pigs are brainworkers. The whole management and organisation of this farm depend on us. Day and night we are watching over your welfare. It is for your sake that we drink the milk and eat those apples.” – George Orwell, “Animal Farm” If...
Tax hikes on businesses and individuals didn’t make the cut in Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s budget address, but they’re a big part of his budget proposal.
The Chicago Board of Elections will appeal a Cook County judge’s ruling that Johnson’s $100 million real estate tax plan on the March 19 ballot is unconstitutional and invalid.
Chicago Teachers Union leadership will use this summer’s contract negotiations with Chicago Public Schools to push for expansion of “sustainable community schools” in the district. The model doesn’t work: students perform worse, absenteeism rises.
A Cook County judge ruled Feb. 23 Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s “mansion tax” was unconstitutional and should be removed from the primary election ballot.
Illinois is on an upward path, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said during his State of the State speech. True, by some measures. Not so much by too many measures that matter.
“I grew up around gun violence on the South Side of Chicago between the projects of Avalon Park and the Henry Horner Homes. I saw all these young brothers losing their lives in situations that could have easily been avoided or mediated.” “I started organizing about 20 years ago because I got tired of seeing...
Nearly 1 of every 900 Chicagoans was shot last year, and 1 in 5,000 killed by gunshot. Where was the greatest risk? The Austin neighborhood reported the most fatal shootings as well as the most shootings overall, with 1 shooting for every 414 residents
“I joined a gang at 10 years old. I spent most of my life on the streets. I had my first taste of whiskey. I smoked. I hit teachers in school. I tortured cats.” “My father mentally and physically abused my mother. I hated him. At 12 years old, I followed him to learn his...
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is supporting an end to Illinois’ 1% grocery tax. Illinois is one of only 13 states with a grocery tax, and the only one of the nation’s 10 largest states.
Pritzker proposes to permanently repeal the 1% state grocery tax. That’s good. The ballooning size of the state budget, not so good.
This episode of The Policy Shop is by Mailee Smith, senior director of labor policy and staff attorney. Chicago’s current political culture has sprung from the heart of the radical Chicago Teachers Union. CTU leaders got their lobbyist elected mayor, meaning their beliefs are dominating both the city’s and schools’ direction. But a number of...
The pandemic had an upside for Illinois state finances – infusing federal dollars as state revenues exceeded projections. Now federal aid is gone. Illinoisans’ ongoing struggles warrant caution, reform in the state’s fiscal year 2025 budget.