Our perspective: Parents, schools scrambling without low-income scholarships
Our perspective: Parents, schools scrambling without low-income scholarships
State lawmakers failed to save the Invest in Kids program allowing nearly 10,000 low-income students to attend a school that better fit their needs. Now some of those schools are being forced to close and families are left with poor options.
By Hilary Gowins
Vallas: Want democracy in Chicago Public Schools? Elect all 21 board members
Vallas: Want democracy in Chicago Public Schools? Elect all 21 board members
The Chicago Teachers Union for decades pushed to elect the school board, but with their former employee in the mayor’s office they rather he choose most of the board for a little while longer.
By Paul Vallas
Vallas: Mayor Johnson should learn from LA that ‘mansion tax’ is a failure
Vallas: Mayor Johnson should learn from LA that ‘mansion tax’ is a failure
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s mansion tax idea failed in Los Angeles, something his recent trip there should have shown him. Here’s why it promises to drag down Chicago businesses in an already hostile environment and shift costs to homeowners.
By Paul Vallas
Sherronda Booker
Sherronda Booker
“2020, after volunteering at my children’s school for so long, I was offered a job in the lunchroom. I think the wage was maybe $13 an hour. I am also a licensed cosmetologist who was not actively doing hair because I was more focused on raising my three children.” “$13-an-hour was not enough to live...
Underachiever: Illinois lags nation in jobs, but growth potential is high
Underachiever: Illinois lags nation in jobs, but growth potential is high
2023 data on Illinois’ labor market gives cause for both concern and hope as state emerges from pandemic job losses.
By Bryce Hill
New bill promises up to 50% property tax relief for Illinoisans
New bill promises up to 50% property tax relief for Illinoisans
The bill introduced by state Rep. Tim Ozinga would redirect savings from shrinking pension payments to support local school districts and reduce Illinois’ second-in-the -nation property taxes. Some districts could see their tax bills cut in half.
By Patrick Andriesen
Our perspective: Chicago’s commercial real estate market still hasn’t recovered from pandemic
Our perspective: Chicago’s commercial real estate market still hasn’t recovered from pandemic
Editor’s note: There is a lot of information coming at you every day, but not a lot of context. The Illinois Policy Institute is launching "Our Perspective" to give you our take on topics of the day so you can better shape your take on them.
By Hilary Gowins
Chicago vote-by-mail begins for Illinois primary, Johnson’s tax hike
Chicago vote-by-mail begins for Illinois primary, Johnson’s tax hike
Chicagoans will see their March 19 primary ballots in their mailboxes starting Feb. 8. The last question is on Mayor Brandon Johnson’s tax hike plan.
By Dylan Sharkey
Upward mobility tougher in Illinois than in rest of Midwest, most of U.S.
Upward mobility tougher in Illinois than in rest of Midwest, most of U.S.
Illinois ranked 40th overall and the worst in the Midwest for social mobility, a new report found.
By Joe Tabor
Samantha Danielle
Samantha Danielle
“Alcohol licensing was easy at the federal level. I am an importer and wholesale distributor, but then you have to get it at the state level because prohibition and bootlegging made it a state-by-state decision on how to sell alcohol.”
Chicago’s chronic school absences hit Hispanic students hard
Chicago’s chronic school absences hit Hispanic students hard
Absenteeism rates among Hispanic students in Chicago Public Schools are chronically high. Proficiency in reading and math is low.
By Hannah Schmid
Appellate decision: Votes on Bring Chicago Home referendum will count
Appellate decision: Votes on Bring Chicago Home referendum will count
Votes on Chicago’s March 19 referendum will count, according to an Illinois Appellate Court ruling. Now voters must weigh the merits of the real estate transfer tax hike.
By Dylan Sharkey
Illinois No. 2 in the nation for gas taxes
Illinois No. 2 in the nation for gas taxes
Illinoisans pay the nation’s second-highest gas taxes behind only Californians, thanks to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s automatic gas tax hikes. The next gas tax hike is scheduled for July 1.
By Dylan Sharkey