Illinois Senate Passes Progressive Tax Change With Higher Rates Than Pritzker’s

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
May 5, 2019 4:55 AM

Illinois lawmakers are one step closer to putting Gov. J.B. Pritzker's signature campaign promise on the 2020 ballot: A proposed change to the Illinois constitution that would allow for higher income tax rates on higher levels of income.

Employee Sues Illinois School District, Union Over Dues

Supreme Court Hears Major Challenge To Union Membership In Janus v. AFSCME

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
May 5, 2019 4:55 AM

A school employee in Illinois filed a federal lawsuit against a local school district and the state's largest public sector union, claiming both refused to stop deducting union dues from her paycheck months after she left the union.

Audit Finds Gaps in Checks on Underfunded Police, Fire Pensions

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
April 24, 2019 4:55 AM

An audit shows that more than half of Illinois' 656 local pension funds for police and firefighters haven't been examined as frequently as state law requires even as some lawmakers want to allow for less frequent pension audits.

Under Threat of Closure, Illinois Lawmakers Try to Save Private School Scholarship Program

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
April 3, 2019 4:55 AM

With Illinois’ popular private school scholarship program under threat of being scaled back, a number of Illinois lawmakers want a resolution asking Gov. J.B. Pritzker to let it continue.

Illinois Put on Clock by Feds to Fix Food Stamp Problems or Lose Some Funding

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
March 27, 2019 4:55 AM

Illinois officials have been put on the clock to fix a longstanding problem with their slow distribution of food assistance or they’ll lose millions of dollars in federal funding, putting a hole in the state’s budget.

Warren Buffett Calls State’s Public Pension Debt a ‘Disaster’

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
March 9, 2019 4:55 AM

Legendary investor Warren Buffett said he wouldn’t “walk into liabilities” by expanding in states like Illinois or New Jersey, which carry billions of dollars in pension debt.

Fight Over Progressive Income Tax Starts in Illinois

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
March 2, 2019 4:55 AM

Even though the issue would be decided at the ballot in November of 2020, Illinoisans are already getting a glimpse of what’s in store in the fight to change the state’s income tax structure from a flat percentage to one that taxes higher earners more.

Pritzker Proposes Closing Private School Scholarships Program

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
February 27, 2019 4:55 AM

Gov. J.B. Pritzker is formally asking lawmakers to shut down Illinois’ private school scholarship program and pour more money into public schools.

Facing Costly New Regulations, Some Gun Shops Close

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
February 10, 2019 4:55 AM

Several gun dealers in Central and Southern Illinois are closing their businesses rather than pay what they’re saying is thousands of dollars in costs to comply with a law enacted last month.

State Board of Education Asks for $19 Billion, More Than Half the State’s Total Budget

Cole Lauterbach - Watchdog.org
January 26, 2019 4:55 AM

The Illinois State Board of Education is asking for $19.3 billion next year to adequately fund public schools, an amount of money equal to more than half the entire existing state budget.