This episode of The Policy Shop is by staff writer Patrick Andriesen and data scientist Jon Josko. Two recent measures of Chicago crime yielded a disturbing theme: Crimes are getting more violent; police are making fewer arrests. One of those crimes, a carjacking, left a Chicago Police officer dead. Officer Luis Huesca was shot 10...
Illinois state lawmakers’ spending plans came in $410 million higher than what Gov. J.B. Pritzker originally proposed. Taxpayers will be forced to pay $1.1 billion more so Illinois can spend record amounts in fiscal year 2025.
The Chicago Teachers Union’s past lobbying to keep curriculum a secret plus its divisive tweets show the union’s demand to allow off-the-record curriculum isn’t in parents’ or students’ best interests.
As public school enrollment continues to drop, Illinois faces the prospect of a smaller future workforce.
Illinois has limited charter school options or open enrollment policies. Lawmakers should expand public school choice options in Illinois to give families more control over their children’s education.
The typical racing fan will pay an extra $22 for general admission to Chicago’s NASCAR “Street Race Weekend” thanks to the city’s amusement tax. Luxury seating could cost residents more than the price of a standard ticket in taxes alone.
Assaults were up 6.7% for the 12 months ending in April as confrontations became more violent. Black Chicagoans were more than 5 times more likely to be assault victims than their white counterparts.
Illinois grew jobs in eight of its 13 metropolitan areas during April, but the Chicago area’s sluggish growth and a stubbornly high unemployment rate tempered any gains.
Whether college protest encampments or political convention agitators, Chicago needs a way to penalize the few who disrupt life for the rest of us. A nuisance ordinance would do that.
Chicagoans reported 2,619 fewer vehicle thefts during the first four months of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, but cases remain more than double what they were just a few years ago as arrests remain low. One carjacking took a police officer’s life.
AAA’s travel forecast estimates 43.8 million people will hit the road for Memorial Day weekend, nearly matching the 2005 record of 44 million people.
Black workers in Illinois face a tougher job market than peers nationally. Hispanic men, Asians face lower unemployment rates relative to peers in other states.
Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch and Illinois Senate President Don Harmon are taking heat from staffers for killing legislation allowing the workers to unionize. Statehouse leaders are big on union rights, as long as it’s not in their offices.