Illinois residents have the highest combined state and local tax burden in the nation, accounting for nearly 17% of their paychecks, and the second-highest property taxes in the country, according to the financial website WalletHub.
by Judith Ruiz-Branch Illinois News Connection
CHICAGO - High taxes and a weak economy are the top concerns of Illinois residents according to a new poll, with nearly half of those surveyed saying they would leave the state if given the opportunity.
The poll, conducted for the Illinois Policy Institute, showed more than half of those surveyed rank the state's high taxes as their number one concern, with the overall economy coming in second. Half of voters surveyed said they would move out of the state, regardless of whether they can afford it.
Dylan Sharkey, assistant editor for the Illinois Policy Institute, said the group started conducting surveys to shed light on tax issues.
"It's impossible for lawmakers to deny that these are the issues that people care about," Sharkey contended. "Because when you have a survey or a statewide poll, it's hard to deny those voices."
Illinois residents have the highest combined state and local tax burden in the nation, accounting for nearly 17% of their paychecks, and the second-highest property taxes in the country, according to the financial website WalletHub.
The bottom line should be that taxes should not be a first resort. The first resort should be to do more with money they already have.
Since 2020, it is estimated Illinois has lost close to 500,000 residents. Sharkey argued the poll helps to dispel the myth people are leaving the state due to the weather. He added states of similar size and climate, such as Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan, are also losing residents but at a much slower rate.
"This might seem obvious to some people, but of course, high taxes are number one," Sharkey emphasized. "Part of the reason we do this polling is because there are lawmakers and groups out there who look at our state and think, 'Well, we just need more money to fix the problem.' And the reality is, if you take more money from people, they're just going to find a new home."
Sharkey added he hopes the poll will serve as guidance for Illinois lawmakers as they consider new legislation which could add to the tax burden residents already carry.
"Even if lawmakers aren't in consensus over new taxes, their constituents are," Sharkey asserted. "The bottom line should be that taxes should not be a first resort. The first resort should be to do more with money they already have."
The state has earmarked $290 million for homeless services this year but advocates are asking for an additional $100 million for emergency housing, assistance and prevention programs.
Photo: Jon Tyson/Unsplash
by Judith Ruiz-Branch Illinois News Connection
CHICAGO - Black residents in Illinois are almost eight times more likely to be homeless than white people, with lack of livable wages and affordable housing among the primary drivers.
Researchers from the University of Illinois Chicago said homelessness is an issue of equity with Blacks disproportionately represented across the state. Rent burdens and economic hardship are both driving factors. In 2022, about 63% of Black renters spent more than 30% of their paycheck on housing.
One in four Black residents is living in poverty in Illinois and one in seven is in deep poverty.
Chama St. Louis, director of organizing and network expansion at the National Black Worker Center, experienced homelessness in the winter of 2011. Even though she was working full-time, she said she could not afford to pay for housing and basic needs for her and her family.
"I felt like I was doing everything right," St. Louis recounted. "You can do everything right and still end up in a place where you don't have a home, because the system is failing us."
One in four Black residents is living in poverty in Illinois and one in seven is in deep poverty. St. Louis argued the Trump administration's dismantling of DEI efforts will only further compound matters.
The state has increased investment in programs such as Home Illinois to address the significant rise in homelessness. St. Louis pointed out even though she registered her and her family as homeless, many programs required her to travel based on the availability at shelters on any given day.
"When we had no gas, then we were sleeping in Walmart parking lots," St. Louis explained. "And on days it was really cold, I would take the kids inside of Walmart and make pallets for them at the bottom of a cart and push them around Walmart for seven hours until the sun came up."
St. Louis added she is now dedicated to helping others who experience homelessness. Along with advocating for improved conditions and wages for Black workers, she stressed she tries to humanize the crisis.
"Outside of the real work that we have to do around policy and making sure that people from a systemic standpoint are being treated fairly, we still have to make sure that we are human beings who care about one another and want to see each other do well," St. Louis emphasized.
The state has earmarked $290 million for homeless services this year but advocates are asking for an additional $100 million for emergency housing, assistance and prevention programs.
This weekend, a violent storm cell producing a tornado that raced along a 12 mile track just south of Champaign-Urbana. Fortunately, nobody was injured, but area saw damage to buildings and powerlines. Without NOAA warnings preceeding major storms like this, many will suffer without the warnings of severe weather.
Photo: NOAA/Unsplash
In addition to short-term storm predictions, like for the storm passing through Central Illinois on Sunday, data from NOAA helps farmers understand what to plant and when to harvest.
by Judith Ruiz-Branch Illinois News Connection
CHICAGO - One of many federal agencies facing cuts by the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and in states like Illinois with plenty of extreme weather events, scientists said the cuts could threaten people's safety.
NOAA employees are bracing for expected layoffs of up to 20%, or more than 1,000 jobs. Among other roles, NOAA's National Weather Service provides data used by most weather forecasters, including for warnings and advisories.
Bernadette Woods Placky, chief meteorologist and vice president of engagement for Climate Central, explained why NOAA data is critical.
"Because of NOAA data, we know when to evacuate ahead of storms, fires," Woods Placky outlined. "We know when not to evacuate, which is also really critical, because that saves a lot of money and a lot of time."
Just this week, Illinois saw severe rain and snowstorms, high winds and tornado and fire warnings. Woods Placky added beyond short-term predictions, data from NOAA helps farmers understand what to plant and when to harvest, especially as crop hardiness zones shift due to climate change.
NOAA's climate and storm data dates back to 1950 and goes beyond U.S. borders. Woods Placky emphasized unstable governments can interrupt data gathering.
"When you get that gap in the data, it invalidates the long-term datasets," Woods Placky pointed out. "You can't carry it with the same weight to tease out longer-term trends to keep people safe and prepared on longer-term shifts that we're seeing."
She added global groups also use NOAA's data, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the United Nations.
Some argued services NOAA offers can instead be privatized.
David Dickson, TV engagement coordinator for the nonprofit Covering Climate Now, said it shows a misunderstanding.
"To argue against NOAA not being useful because we have private companies offering weather apps would be to argue against farmers because we have grocery stores," Dickson underscored. "It really does fund the invisible backbone of virtually everything we consume."
CHICAGO - On Tuesday, March 25, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing the national mail voter registration form to require documentary proof of citizenship, such as a passport, to register to vote.
The order threatens to withhold federal funding from states that count mail ballots received after Election Day, which is permitted under Illinois law. Overall, the executive order attempts to overhaul federal elections by making it harder for Americans to vote through unnecessary procedures verifying citizenship status and voting eligibility. The E.O. also affects uniformed and overseas voters' ability to cast their ballots in an election.
The American Civil Liberties Union immediately condemned the order on Tuesday, saying it would disenfranchise millions of eligible voters and make the process more cumbersome. The ACLU said in a statement, "This directive represents a significant overreach of executive power and poses a direct threat to the fundamental right to vote."
Around the nation, other voting rights advocate groups voiced their disapproval. The League of Women Voters of Illinois and the ACLU of Illinois released the following joint statement:
As organizations who have worked tirelessly to advance and expand access to the ballot across Illinois for many years, we condemn the President’s blatant overreach aimed at changing the progress we have made in our state. Donald Trump would disenfranchise millions of eligible voters – based on the lie that non-citizens are voting in large numbers. This executive order – like so many of Trump’s efforts – is blatantly illegal and attempts to substitute the conspiracy theories of the Trump White House for good policy measures we have adopted in Illinois.
With less than a week before voters across the State of Illinois go to the ballot box in critical important elections, no one should be confused or misled: the President’s order does not impact the ability of people to vote by mail or register on election day in our state for these elections. We encourage everyone who is eligible to participate and vote for candidates who reflect their values in these important local elections.
We encourage any voters with questions to call the non-partisan Election Protection hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (English), 888-VE-Y-VOTA (Spanish), 888-API-VOTE (Asian languages), or 844-YALLA-US (Arabic).
"President Trump's executive order attempting to require documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration and restrict the acceptance of mail-in ballots received after Election Day, among other measures, is a blatant overreach that threatens to disenfranchise tens of millions of eligible voters," Sophia Lin Lakin, the director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project. "This measure will no doubt disproportionately impact historically-excluded communities, including voters of color, naturalized citizens, people with disabilities, and the elderly, by pushing unnecessary barriers to the fundamental right to vote. We will do everything in our power to stop this unconstitutional attack on the right to vote to ensure that every eligible American can participate in our democracy. We will see President Trump in court."
The Order directs the Attorney General to prohibit states from counting mail ballots received after Election Day in elections for President, U.S. Senate, and U.S. House. States that do not comply with the executive order would be subject to funding cuts by Election Assistance Commission.
The executive order states, after citing examples of election procedures in other countries, that "Free, fair, and honest elections unmarred by fraud, errors, or suspicion are fundamental to maintaining our constitutional Republic. The right of American citizens to have their votes properly counted and tabulated, without illegal dilution, is vital to determining the rightful winner of an election."
Past audits and studies have shown that cases of voter fraud in American elections are rare.
President Trump's order requires states to remove noncitizens from voter rolls. Federal agencies must share data with states, such as immigration and Social Security records, to facilitate states checking voter eligibility. It also insists that states and federal agencies share data to prosecute election crimes, potentially violating individual privacy. The order grants federal agencies, including the head of the Department of Government Efficiency team, access to check state rolls "for consistency with Federal requirements."
Another provision states that when submitting the national mail voter registration form to register or update their information, the only acceptable proof of citizenship are a passport or a REAL ID, military ID, or other valid government ID indicating citizenship. Only about half of Americans have a U.S. passport, and currently, only five states—Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont, and Washington—offer enhanced driver's licenses that show proof of citizenship.
The order also authorizes the Department of Homeland Security and the DOGE Administrator to review each state’s voter registration list for "consistency with Federal requirements." As part of this requirement, the E.O. allows DHS and DOGE to subpoena state records at their discretion.
While civil liberties and voting rights groups mobilize, many legal experts argue that President Trump lacks the authority through the use of an executive order to make such changes, asserting that the order violates existing federal voting statutes.
Research shows any length of detention has a poor outcome for children, especially those of color, and unnecessarily costs the state tens of millions of dollars each year.
by Judith Ruiz-Branch Illinois News Connection
CHICAGO - A recent report is highlighting the need for a complete overhaul of the Illinois juvenile justice system. It called for a renewed rehabilitative focus while prioritizing the rights, needs and safety of children, which it argued is sorely lacking across the board.
The report by the Illinois Juvenile Justice Initiative found the majority of juvenile detention centers fail to meet even basic standards to keep children safe, which has opened counties up to lawsuits.
Katherine Buchanan, a consultant for the Illinois Juvenile Justice Initiative and the report's author, said the current state-subsidized, county-run model incentivizes the jailing of children and does not provide an ultimate authority on oversight, begging the question of why and how the state jails children.
"The timing is right to really look at when and why children are detained, and how we can really focus the use of detention on those most critical cases," Buchanan contended.
Buchanan pointed out research shows any length of detention has a poor outcome for children, especially those of color, and unnecessarily costs the state tens of millions of dollars each year.
The report found gaps across all centers in behavioral services and education, disciplinary actions and the use of solitary confinement. Overall, children of color are disproportionately impacted, coming into contact with the legal system at much higher rates than their white peers, even when they commit the same offenses.
Buchanan explained how childhood trauma increases the risk of delinquency in adolescents, and detention only serves to retraumatize an already at-risk population while compounding long-term consequences.
"Even short periods in detention can harm children in terms of their educational attainment, their ability to reengage in school, their mental health and also in terms of their long-term future earnings," Buchanan outlined.
The report called for legislation prioritizing community-based efforts and using detention as a last resort. A new bill was introduced last month to initiate efforts for juvenile justice reform across the state and largely mirrors the suggested solutions outlined in the report.
If the federal match rate drops, Illinois would have two options: come up with more than $40 billion to cover expansion costs or drop it altogether.
Photo: Freestocks.org/StockSnap
by Judith Ruiz-Branch Illinois News Connection
CHICAGO -
As Congress continues to threaten deep cuts to the Medicaid program, a new KFF report shows how some of the proposed changes could end coverage for an estimated 20 million people nationwide, more than 800,000 in Illinois. One idea targets the Medicaid expansion federal match rate. The federal government currently pays 90% of the costs for people covered under what's known as the Medicaid expansion, that extended coverage to nearly all low-income adults.
Liz Williams, senior policy analyst with KFF, explained that if the federal match rate drops, Illinois would have two options: come up with more than $40 billion to cover expansion costs or drop it altogether.
"Illinois has a law where the state is required to automatically end expansion coverage if the match rate drops, so in those trigger law states, there's 12 of them, enrollees are at greater risk of losing coverage," she explained.
Nearly 30% of Medicaid enrollees in Illinois have health-care coverage because of the Medicaid expansion and would be at risk of losing it should these changes go through.
The Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act was enacted to reduce the number of uninsured people nationwide. It provided states with an increased federal match rate to help pay for their health-care costs. Williams added that if states can't afford to pick up the added costs from decreased federal support, the number of uninsured people will dramatically increase, and any gains in financial security and health outcomes associated with the expansion would be reversed.
"Medicaid is jointly funded by states and the federal government, so any restrictions in federal Medicaid spending really leaves states with tough choices about how to offset reductions," she continued.
She said states have a few options, including increasing state tax revenues, decreasing spending on non-Medicaid services such as education, or decreasing coverage for other groups. Governor J.B. Pritzker has already proposed eliminating Medicaid coverage for non-citizen adults aged 42 to 65 as a way to make up for the state's $1.7 billion-budget gap.
Dieterich – State Representative Adam Niemerg (R-Dieterich) says it is time for state leaders to prioritize the needs of Illinois citizens. In Niemerg's opinion, Governor Pritzker's presentation of a "balanced budget" is nothing more than the usual, deceptive schemes.
"It is baffling to me that we cannot have bipartisan support for managing our resources better and preventing these constant gaping budget holes that are a staple for all of these so-called 'balanced' budgets," he stated, criticizing how Illinois budgets are determined. "For years, the state has been using creative accounting gimmicks to create the illusion of a 'balanced' budget."
Niemerg says the state needs to do a better job of managing Illinois finances. Calling for an Illinois version of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), he said state budgets usually show increased income and lower spending projections. However, when the bills are presented to the state, the payment cycle "is stretched out longer and longer and, in the end, taxpayers take it on the chin because there is a monthly penalty for delayed state payments."
"High taxes, poor state leadership, and rising crime are the culprits for the outbound migration."
"Not once did the Governor mention property tax relief. Not once did he mention pension reform. Not once did he mention public safety concerns in Chicagoland," Niemerg said in a statement on Wednesday. "He did, however, mention Donald Trump at least six times in his speech. Instead of focusing on President Trump, the Governor should focus on the issues Illinois residents actually care about."
Niemerg stressed that Governor Pritzker's remarks about President Trump during the State of the State Address do nothing to solve the very real problems facing our state.
He points out that Illinois had the second-highest outbound moves in 2024 – second only to New Jersey. He said the combination of high taxes, poor state leadership, and rising crime are the culprits for the outbound migration. He also noted the Governor did not address the issue of illegal immigration and the amount of money being spent on programs and services for people not legally supposed to be here. A recent Pew Research poll showed 59% of Americans approve of President Trump's immigration policies.
"The vast majority of Americans support President Trump's efforts to secure our borders and deport criminals here illegally," Niemerg said, who believes the Governor and the Democratic majority in the House are out of touch with the majority of American people. "Instead of prioritizing the needs of our own citizens, they are continuing to pour money into programs for illegal immigrants. We have a responsibility to address the concerns of our own citizens. It is not the job of the state of Illinois to solve the immigration crisis."
PONTIAC - People everywhere are conquering their cabin fever and are enjoying the great outdoors after a long, bitter winter. But before you head out for that hike, health care experts remind you to take precautions to avoid tick bites. Read more . . .
CHICAGO - An Illinois law professor is weighing in on what she called a "very public and open test of due process" for immigrants being deported from the United States without court hearings. Read more . . .
CHAMPAIGN - In a show of solidarity against President Donald Trump's trade and immigration policies, which critics say are harming families and retirement savings, more than a thousand protesters gathered Saturday at West Park near downtown Champaign for the Hands-Off! Mobilization rally. Read more . . .
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by Judith Ruiz-Branch
CHICAGO - On Tuesday, March 25, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing the national mail voter registration form to require documentary proof of citizenship, such as a passport, to register to vote.
