Illinois lawmakers pass pension sweeteners without knowing the cost

11/20/2019

Illinois has nation’s worst pension debt. Maybe that’s because state lawmakers take a problem they aren’t sure exists, apply a solution they don’t know will work and never determine the cost.

TAGS: Civic Federation, firefighter pensions, IRS: Internal Revenue Service, Jason Barickman, municipal pensions, pensions, police pensions, public safety, safe harbor, Social Security

Pritzker releases contradicting numbers on $3.4B tax hike

By Orphe Divounguy, Bryce Hill, Suman Chattopadhyay

03/27/2019

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker's inconsistent progressive income tax numbers don't add up, which means he will have to pass middle-class tax hikes to raise what he wants to spend.

TAGS: Civic Federation, fair tax, Illinois Department of Revenue, income growth, income tax, JB Pritzker, progressive income tax, taxes

Civic Federation calls for tax hikes, opposes sensible reform in budget criticism

05/17/2018

The Civic Federation’s criticism of Gov. Bruce Rauner’s proposed budget is a mixed bag, with its own proposals for Illinois’ financial crisis – including nearly $3 billion in tax hikes – missing the mark.

TAGS: AFSCME: American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees, budget, Civic Federation, health insurance, income tax, Laurence Msall, LGDF: Local Government Distributive Fund, municipal pensions, pensions, progressive income tax, taxes

Civic Federation proposal hits Illinois taxpayers with $51 billion in tax hikes

By Ted Dabrowski, John Klingner

02/12/2017

The Civic Federation’s budget plan repeats old mistakes with multibillion-dollar tax hikes and no serious, structural reform.

TAGS: budget, Civic Federation, pensions, taxes

Out of ideas: Political insiders push for a $30 billion tax hike

By Ted Dabrowski, John Klingner

02/17/2016

The Civic Federation is pushing a $30 billion tax hike in Illinois, following the same mistaken path that got Illinois in today’s fiscal crisis.

TAGS: Civic Federation, taxes

Unlocking Opportunity: How Occupational Licensing Reform Would Promote Equitable Empowerment in Illinois

Illinois finds itself at a crossroads: will it empower minorities and poor people to unleash their potential, or will it perpetuate an inequitable status quo? For far too many Illinoisans, opportunity is unfairly and unnecessarily out of reach. Illinois ranks in the bottom ten among all states in social mobility and last among Midwest states...

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Unlocking Opportunity: How Occupational Licensing Reform Would Promote Equitable Empowerment in Illinois

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Brandi Lentz

Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

CBS Chicago: Illinois’ highest-paid superintendent receives $400K per year to oversee 1,200 students