Benefit programs in Illinois punish people for hard work. An estimated 710,000 Illinoisans have intentionally held themselves back financially to avoid losing government benefits.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a law adding $11.1 billion in new liabilities to Chicago’s fire and police pensions, already the worst-funded in the nation. These “sweeteners” hurt retirement security more than they help.
Chicago’s municipal pension is one of the worst-funded pension systems in the nation despite sky-high taxes dedicated to paying into it. Fat pensions such as former Ald. Walter Burnett’s show why.
Chicago Public Schools has 275 buildings that are too empty. On average, over 1-in-3 school desks is empty. The Chicago Teachers Union unrelentingly forces that big waste on CPS as administrators scramble to close a $734 million budget shortfall.
Students in Illinois are steadily returning to class across Illinois’ 866 school districts and 3,835 schools. The state’s public schools have a lot of room for improvement to prepare students for life beyond the classroom.
Illinois General Assembly members filed 31,011 pages of amendments to bills in the last 24 hours of the 2025 regular session. Truly understanding what they were deciding would require reading 22 pages per minute.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s extensive out-of-state travel raises questions about whether he’s prioritizing national exposure over challenges facing Illinois. During a 12-month stretch, he averaged one out-of-state trip per month.
The national Educational Choice for Children Act creates a federal tax-credit scholarship program for both public and private school students to help boost them academically. Here are seven reasons why Illinois should opt into the program.
With most property taxes going to local public schools, Illinois parents and taxpayers should know how well third- through eighth-grade students read and perform math at local public school districts compared to the cost per student.
Across Illinois, homeowners are losing their homes and all their equity over minor tax debts, with private investors reaping the profits. Illinois is one of the remaining states hasn’t reformed this unconstitutional practice.
Illinois was just ranked last in the nation for financial transparency. The state’s chronic delays, audit failures and last-minute budgeting have put taxpayers in the dark and long-term stability at risk.
Illinois public school teachers can opt out of union membership and stop paying dues in August. But union misinformation is spread to keep them in.
Illinois lost 218 businesses to other states in 2023, part of an acceleration to triple the rate of what losses were before the pandemic. When adjusted for population, Illinois ranked No. 2 for the most business losses.