WTWO-NBC in Terre Haute, Indiana uses Illinois Policy Institute data to highlight Illinois’ outmigration problem.

The lack of change often results in the lack of growth. That’s one main reason many Illinois residents have chosen to leave the land of Lincoln.

In fact, Illinois lost more citizens in 2015, than any other state, in some cases, those departing residents didn’t go very far.

Steve Miller, Chief Financial Officer of Pioneer Oil Company completes work comfortably behind his office desk in Vincennes, the company’s new headquarters. Nearly a year ago, his outlook was different. He was working in Illinois and the company wasn’t as profitable as it is now.

That’s due to a fifteen minute trek across the Wabash River where pioneer oil used to stand in Lawrenceville, Illinois.

“The cost of doing business is greater in Illinois than it is in Indiana. So those are things that if you can avoid them, it makes sense to avoid them,” Miller said.

The lack of a balanced state budget and the 2011 hike in income taxes made miller’s vision for business expansion a challenge.

“It is more difficult in Illinois to get the attention of government with the respect to positive outcomes.”

Pioneer Oil became one of the businesses to leave Illinois in 2015. Teaming up with Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Miller finds better connection opportunities with the community for the company.

Like the company’s partnership with Purdue University following the change of scene. The partnership provides a research lab in which students can learn about oil, gas and enhanced oil recovery.

“We find Indiana has a great economic stability as far as the state itself goes, and its attitude toward business is excellent.”

Miller says that because of the move, he expects a better recruitment and retention rate for employees. But he hasn’t cut all ties with the state. The company still does drilling business in Illinois and other surrounding states.
His venture across the Wabash is one of many examples. In 2013 more than 6,000 Illinois residents left for Indiana alone. A U.S. Census Report found the state’s population shrank between 2014 to 2015 more than any other state at a rate of one person every five minutes. During those years, they lost more than 105,000 citizens. Experts from the Illinois Policy Institute say the population decrease is due to, “weak job growth, a sluggish state economy and fiscal management.”

Many residents didn’t plan on picking up and leaving home, but sometimes all it takes is a change of scene to hold a better outlook.

Indiana State University graduate student Brittany Bernard, a Chicago native planned to return home to start her internship in school psychology. One major reason for her desire to return centers around her step father, who was recently diagnosed with Leukemia. Though pursuing a state paid internship, she had to weigh some pros and cons.

“In Illinois they pay their interns with that $10,000 and don’t give them anything else and I don’t know anybody that can live off of $10,000 a year. However, in Indiana most schools are offering anywhere between $20- $30,000,” Bernard said.

That’s not to mention the additional training and conferences Illinois students face before landing an internship.

“Graduating from an Indiana school and then going on to an internship and a job placement in Indiana is a lot smoother. They don’t require as much, I guess funds to get to the interviews whereas Illinois, you have to pay to get to these conferences and these interviews and then you don’t get paid as much.”

In a perfect world, Bernard wants to establish her career in Indiana after her May graduation date, then eventually move back.

Although right now home seems far away, Bernard has made some adjustments.

“Well, I got a cat. So that kind of makes it like home, like I have somebody to come home to. I’ve definitely made a lot of life long friends, in undergrad and in graduate school. Being in graduate school you see the same group of people all day, ever day and so you kind of have to be friends, otherwise it’s a terrible experience.”

According to IRS migration data, Illinois experienced an especially heavy loss of residents during the first two years of the 2011 income tax hike. The loss spans across all ages and income brackets, but the heaviest was from prime working age people from 26-44. And from taxpayers reporting more than $200 thousand income per year.