Illinois’ total state economic activity has increased by only 4 percent since 2007, which is lower than the U.S.’ 10 percent GDP growth during the worst decade of the Great Depression.
Although Illinois hosts corporate headquarters of many large companies, its economy lags in blue-collar job opportunities.
Lawmakers’ proposed new and higher taxes would only make things harder for struggling Illinoisans.
Despite Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s spin, residents are fleeing Chicago, showing they feel they are better off elsewhere.
House Bill 3293, which would force any person or group that is not a school district, religious organization or transportation company, but that possesses a school bus, to change the appearance of the school bus, passed the Illinois General Assembly on the last day of spring session.
Middle class families are unwilling to live in a city where there aren’t enough jobs and the cost of living is too high.
The General Assembly hasn’t made significant traction on a balanced budget before session ends, but the Illinois Senate had time May 30 to pass a bill regulating trampoline safety.
March 2017 saw 15,000 more Illinoisans on food stamps than March 2016, while the number of Indiana SNAP recipients dropped from March 2016 to March 2017.
While major headlines broke over news that Chicago was the only one of America’s largest 20 cities to shrink from July 2015 to July 2016, most of Illinois’ other cities with 50,000 people or more also lost population.
Illinois lost 195,000 more college-bound students than it gained from 2000-2014.
Illinois lost more millennial college students than any other state except New Jersey between 2000 and 2014, and Illinois’ loss of young people appears to be accelerating.
In 2015, Chicago-headquartered Akuna Capital LLC signed a deal with the state of Illinois that state officials estimated to be worth $4.5 million. As part of the agreement, Akuna agreed to hire 10 new employees. The agreement states the new hires specialized in trading and software.
Only 51 percent of black adults reported having some form of work in Illinois.
New Bureau of Labor Statistics data show Illinois’ black residents have an unemployment rate of 12.7 percent, more than double the state’s overall rate.