Illinois Policy

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Illinois Policy

Illinois Policy

@illinoispolicy

Fighting corruption, high taxes, poverty, and barriers to progress and innovation in Illinois and Chicago.

Chicago Katılım Şubat 2009
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Illinois Policy
Illinois Policy@illinoispolicy·
NEW EPISODE Every year, the Illinois state budget process follows a familiar, chaotic script: Thousands of pages are introduced in the dead of night, followed by a vote before anyone has time to read the fine print. Our team sat down with former Illinois State Rep. @TomDemmer to deconstruct the math behind the state's massive $50 billion budget on the latest episode of the Illinois Policy Podcast.
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Illinois Policy
Illinois Policy@illinoispolicy·
Illinois spent $5 billion more than it took in last year. Lawmakers' proposed solution: a 3% surtax on millionaires to raise $4-5 billion. Notice the math. Even if the tax performed at the most optimistic projection (and no one left) it would barely close last year's gap. It doesn't solve the structural problem. It papers over it for a cycle. The structural problem is spending growth. Illinois government spending has been growing far faster than the economy or the population. Until that trajectory changes, no amount of new revenue closes the gap permanently. You're filling a bathtub with the drain open. The alternative that actually works: a smart spending cap. Tie government spending growth to the rate of economic and population growth. Anything beyond that threshold requires voter approval. Both red and blue states have adopted versions of this. It doesn't require raising taxes on anyone. It just requires fiscal discipline. Meanwhile, the people whose taxes Springfield wants to raise are the same people leaving at the fastest rate. IRS data shows high earners departing Illinois at 2x the rate of other groups. A million net taxpayers have left in a decade, taking $88 billion in income. Massachusetts, the state that just tried this, saw $4 billion leave in year one and its total income base shrink. You can't close a deficit by shrinking your tax base.
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CBS Chicago
CBS Chicago@cbschicago·
The Chicago Archdiocese is accusing Chicago Public schools of abruptly pulling funding for students with disabilities in Catholic schools. cbsloc.al/48yh7Sv
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Illinois Policy
Illinois Policy@illinoispolicy·
Only 2-in-5 students in @ChiPubSchools can read at grade level. So what is the Chicago Teachers Union's solution to this academic crisis? Demanding a paid day off so teachers and students can participate in political protests. @CTULocal1 is pushing for an illegal one-day strike that they are marketing as a day of "civic action," proving once again that union leadership views schools as political organizing centers and not places of learning. Chicago parents and taxpayers are financing a political machine, not a delivery system for education. It's unlikely that there is anyone in the city who is confused about CTU's extreme unpopularity among the voting public. But if there is, this is it right here.
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Paris Schutz
Paris Schutz@paschutz·
BREAKING: CPS CEO King says schools should stay open May 1st, rebuffing CTU, Mayor and Board of Education Harden:
Paris Schutz@paschutz

"My position has not changed." CPS CEO Macquline King rebuffs school board, says they need to take a public vote if they think CTU should get May 1st off. My recommendation to the Chicago Board of Education for weeks and again during this week’s Agenda Review Committee meeting, has been to maintain May 1 as an instructional day for students. As a career educator, I believe every minute in the classroom is vital for our students.  My position has not changed.  If the Board chooses to change the approved 2025-26 academic calendar, they should convene  a special Board meeting for a formal vote on this matter as soon as possible. Our staff, students and families need a clear understanding of what to expect on May 1.”

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Austin Berg
Austin Berg@Austin__Berg·
NEW: In a now-deleted post, the Chicago Teachers Union claims Chicago Public Schools CEO Macquline King is standing with the union to close schools on May 1. It’s unclear whether the post was deleted because King is no longer endorsing this action, or because the post spelled her name incorrectly. State law should explicitly ban political gamesmanship like this in Chicago Public Schools and across the state. Incredibly unfair to working parents and students.
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Austin Berg@Austin__Berg

WATCH: Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates is asked whether the union’s brand has become toxic with Chicagoans. Recent polling revealed a record low 27.5% favorable rating for the CTU. Gates is currently seeking to remove students from class for political protests on May 1.

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Sendhil Revuluri
Sendhil Revuluri@SendhilForCPS·
As a teacher & @ChiPubSchools parent, I saw how losing school days hurts kids… and absenteeism has spiked Now @ChicagosMayor is strong-arming CPS to close schools on May 1… not to improve student outcomes, but to advance a political agenda
Paris Schutz@paschutz

Multiple CPS sources tell me CEO King had a tense phone call with the Mayor yesterday - after putting out guidance that classes would go on as scheduled May 1st. King deferred to the Board of Ed when CTU filed a grievance - claiming they should be able to move a planned "Professional Development" day from June to May 1. The CTU-aligned appointed board of Ed members voted to approve in a closed door straw poll - providing majority support. Thus, barring more last minute confusion, classes are canceled May 1 for CTU members to attend May Day rallies. CTU has also called for curriculum teaching kids about protesting, labor history and the significance of MayDay...

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Molly
Molly@mollyfleck·
@paschutz I’m sorry what?! As a CPS parent, this is my first time hearing about this.
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Landon
Landon@landon20s·
The same people against AI in the classroom are supportive of kids not going to school at all What are we doing, Chicago
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Paris Schutz
Paris Schutz@paschutz·
Some unhappy CPS parents today voicing their concerns over last minute maneuvers at the Board of Ed to ensure CTU gets its wish for a day off for protest on May 1
SnarkyMommy@SnarkyMommy

@paschutz CPS also decreed we can’t practice or play games during standardized testing next week. So three hours AFTER my kid takes the pre-ACT (not even the real thing) she can’t have a 90-minute soccer practice. And now we can’t go to school the Friday before the AP exams? I CAN NOT!

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Austin Berg
Austin Berg@Austin__Berg·
WATCH: Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates when asked whether the union will support Brandon Johnson’s re-election. A: “I don’t even know why that would be a question.” Asked if she would support Gov. JB Pritzker for president. A: “Look…this isn’t about politics.”
Austin Berg@Austin__Berg

WATCH: Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates is asked whether the union’s brand has become toxic with Chicagoans. Recent polling revealed a record low 27.5% favorable rating for the CTU. Gates is currently seeking to remove students from class for political protests on May 1.

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Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune@chicagotribune·
From the Editorial Board: Mayor Brandon Johnson’s head tax may be dead in Chicago for now, but Springfield is right to try to keep it that way. chicagotribune.com/2026/04/07/edi…
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Corey A. DeAngelis, school choice evangelist
Corey A. DeAngelis, school choice evangelist@DeAngelisCorey·
The Speaker of the House in Illinois just bragged about how he's sending his kid to a private school. He fights against school choice for others.
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Illinois Policy
Illinois Policy@illinoispolicy·
ICYMI Chicago’s transit system is trapped in a doom loop. Ridership has stalled out at 74% of pre-pandemic levels, as commuters flee for reasons involving safety concerns, revenue drops, and a decline in the quality of service. Here's how other cities solved the problem: >Washington D.C. installed 5-foot-tall barrier gates at stations and fare evasion dropped by a massive 82%. >San Francisco installed similar gates and saw an immediate drop in required maintenance. Studies show that keeping evaders out deters potential violent offenders, making the whole system safer. Chicago has the money to fix this right now. illinoispolicy.org/combating-fare…
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Illinois Policy
Illinois Policy@illinoispolicy·
Progressive politicians and activists love to frame high taxes as an honorable if mildly inconvenient necessity for funding neighborhood public schools and parks. This is a false premise for a number of reasons, but one of the most underrated is the way policymakers abuse what are called "tax increment financing" districts. Last year, Cook County's 400+ TIF districts intercepted $2 billion in taxpayer money. Instead of funding core services, these districts act as a shadow budget benefiting private developers, or as a massive slush fund to plug Chicago’s budget gaps. Where there is a TIF, the overall levy doesn't change, meaning your taxes go up just to subsidize it. It is a spectacular scam. illinoispolicy.org/cook-county-ti…
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Illinois Policy
Illinois Policy@illinoispolicy·
The government shouldn't force you to take on $26,000 in debt just to earn a living cutting hair. But in Illinois, arbitrary occupational licensing laws do exactly that, creating a massive barrier to entry for everyday workers trying to build a career. Here is the reality of the licensing bureaucracy in Illinois: >Nearly 1 in 4 workers in the state (about 1.6 million people) needs a government license to do their job. >Mandatory cosmetology schooling in Illinois requires 1,500 hours of unpaid time, which can cost up to $26,331, depending on the school. >Those who complete paid apprenticeships nationally earn an average starting salary of $80,000, far above the standard $55,000 average. In Springfield, House Bill 3460 would help fix this by allowing 1,500-hour paid apprenticeships as a direct pathway to licensure for cosmetologists and barbers. It is already attracting bipartisan support. illinoispolicy.org/illinois-can-e…
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Illinois Policy
Illinois Policy@illinoispolicy·
Springfield took a one-time $15.6 billion federal COVID bailout and used it to permanently bloat the state bureaucracy. Spending on "human services" alone jumped 64% in just three years, padding the payroll with 5,500 new state employees. Now the pandemic is over, the federal funds are gone, and Illinois taxpayers are on the hook for a projected $21 billion deficit. It’s not a revenue problem. It is quite literally a spending problem. But some of us already knew that. illinoispolicy.org/illinois-must-…
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Chicago Contrarian
Chicago Contrarian@ChicagoContrar1·
Here is something interesting. Stacy Davis Gates takes over at IFT and on March 27, IFT donated $5K to "Friends of Brandon Johnson." Stacy will be a drain on IFT finances.
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Keşfet

@ChiPubSchools @CTULocal1 @ChicagosMayor @paschutz @elonmusk @BarackObama @taylorswift13 @cristiano