Gov. J.B. Pritzker increased Illinois’ state spending more during his first six state budgets than any other state leader in terms of raw dollars since Gov. George Ryan, who took office more than 25 years ago.
Allan Luzbetak has lived in the Lockport, Illinois area for decades; but concerns over rising property taxes could push him out of the state as he enters retirement. He explains his disappointment with community leaders’ approach to spending, and why it tempts so many people in situations like his to leave the state. “I’ve lived...
Since 2017, Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara has cut the property tax rate to 1.93% by cutting costs and spending smarter – a playbook other Illinois cities should copy.
Illinois Auditor General Frank Mautino is retiring after a 10-year term of monitoring public spending. The scrutiny his own campaign spending drew should have lawmakers rethink how they choose his replacement.
If Illinois state lawmakers follow the Chicago Teachers Union’s push for a 7.92% base corporate tax rate, it can severely hurt Illinois’ competitiveness. Job creators do not need another reason to abandon Illinois.
Adding sales taxes to services is limited in the U.S., with 46 states not generally taxing services. Illinois may break from the pack and start adding sales taxes to haircuts, lawn care, car repair and a long list of other service expected to cost $2.7 billion.
Despite Illinois law setting clear budget rules, lawmakers routinely fast-track last-minute, backroom deals, keeping voters and other legislators in the dark.
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.
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 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.
Illinois leaders keep using tax hikes as a budget quick-fix, but the state’s fiscal troubles – and the taxpayer burden – persist. Here are the 70 tax and fee hikes state leaders have imposed during the past 15 years.
Illinois has the third-highest corporate income taxes in the nation. These are some of the most harmful taxes to economic growth, particularly in times of economic hardship.
The median Chicago residence paid $2,059 in property taxes just to support Chicago Public Schools in 2024, 62% more than they paid 15 years ago. More than half of a Chicago homeowners’ property tax bill now goes to CPS.
Many Illinois towns are rushing to extend the 1% grocery tax. See below if your town is one of them. The statewide tax ends in 2026, but local governments can choose to retain it without asking their residents for permission.