Governor Pat Quinn’s plan to cancel pay raises for State of Illinois unionized workers due to insufficient funds in the FY2012 budget has hit a major hurdle. The plan, which would have affected 30,000 members of Council 31 of the American…
After two consecutive years of losses, the State of Illinois is reporting moderate growth in sales tax revenue for FY2011, which ended on June 30, 2011. Not only did sales tax revenue collected by the State grow but it also beat the…
Governor Pat Quinn signed the State of Illinois’ FY2012 budget on June 30, 2011, a day before the start of the new fiscal year. The FY2012 budget is expected to generate a mountain of unpaid Medicaid bills and a possible court battle over…
The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago recently co-hosted a conference featuring analysis and discussion among local and national budget experts to better understand the fiscal condition of states and prospects for economic recovery after…
The Illinois General Assembly reconvened on June 22, 2011 for an extra day of the spring session to sort out several issues that were not addressed three weeks ago when the legislature adjourned after approving a $33.2 billion budget. Both…
Despite a significant increase in Illinois’ corporate income tax rate enacted in January 2011, much of the anticipated new State revenue will be offset by corporate tax incentives provided in recent changes to the federal tax code. Known…
Although lawmakers have been considering ways to cut the State of Illinois’ costs for state retiree health insurance, the General Assembly adjourned on May 31, 2011 without taking action on the issue. A bill (…
After several significant budget related initiatives failed to advance out of the General Assembly, such as proposed…
Surprising as it may seem, not all budget cuts reduce spending. A case in point is the FY2012 Medicaid budget passed by the Illinois House on May 13, 2011.…
A new report estimates that the State of Illinois could save between $260 million and $300 million in FY2012 by increasing the…
