The Civic Federation often recommends that local governments undertake long-term financial forecasting and planning, which the Federation believes is one of the single most important financial practices for local governments to undertake. Other groups such as the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) and the National Association Advisory Council on State and Local Budgeting also consider…
In the last hours of the 96th Illinois General Assembly, on January 11, 2011, the legislature took significant action on the State’s budget by passing a bill to increase personal income tax rates from 3% to 5% and corporate income tax rates from 4.8% to 7%. Governor Quinn signed the measure on January 13. The income tax increases, combined with legislation authorizing borrowing of approximately $…
On January 13, 2011, the Civic Federation sent this letter to Governor Quinn urging him to sign Senate Bill 3778. Click here to read a Civic Federation blog post on the bill. Dear Governor Quinn: The Civic Federation urges you to sign Senate Bill 3778, a bill that will end the Seniors Ride Free program. This program has strained the resources of public transit agencies while allowing…
On February 14 Governor Quinn signed into law Public Act 096-1527 which effectively ended the Seniors Ride Free program instituted by former Governor Rod Blagojevich and restricts free ride eligibility only to low-income seniors. The Civic Federation commends the Governor and General Assembly for taking this action. As detailed in the blog post below, the Seniors Ride Free program has proven to…
As part of the Cook County Modernization Report, the Civic Federation examined the County’s revenue and tax structure. Cook County is the only county in Illinois to have home rule status, which gives it considerable taxing flexibility. One of the report’s key revenue findings is that there has been a significant change in Cook County’s tax revenue structure. Nationwide, property taxes are…
This editorial says the State of Illinois should cut spending before searching for additional sources of revenue. It cites the Civic Federation’s “Fiscal Rehabilitation Plan for the State of Illinois.”
In this news segment about plans to increase the State of Illinois income tax in order to balance its budget, Civic Federation President Laurence Msall says that any tax increase must be part of a long-term fiscal plan.
This segment of the “Marketplace” program discusses the effect the State of Illinois budget gap has had on its fiscal outlook. Civic Federation President Laurence Msall says the State has not properly funded its pension system, which could be expected to run out of money in 10 to 15 years.
Over the course of 2010 the IIFS blog explored a number of State of Illinois budget topics ranging from Medicaid/HMO funding issues to the State public pension system. Posts on the IIFS blog not only supplement IIFS publications, but also provide additional context and commentary to events in the news and State budget events. Posts about the State Medicaid system featured prominently on the…
In 2010 the Civic Federation blog provided comprehensive information about government and fiscal issues across Illinois for the public, government officials and media. In a range of posts on topics from the effect Public Act 96-0889 would have on local government pension systems to explaining nuances of the Cook County property tax system, the Federation blog offered rapid-response commentary on…
