Illinois Resource Guide
Background:
Illinois has traditionally been closely divided between Republicans and Democrats, with Chicago and other urban areas firmly supporting the Democrats and the suburbs and rural areas leaning Republican. However, in recent years the Democrats have gained a strong advantage in both state and federal elections. This shift has been aided by infighting among moderates and conservatives in the Illinois Republican Party and a weakening of Republican dominance in the Chicago suburbs.
Illinois does not term limit any elected officials, does not allow citizen initiative and referendum, and does not allow recall elections of any elected officials. Illinois has also been known for corruption in its politics; former Governor George Ryan was recently convicted of corruption and current Governor Rod Blagojevich has been under investigation numerous times during his time in office.
Issues:
Tax Increases:
Governor Blagojevich recently proposed a new $8 billion gross receipts tax on businesses to fund his universal healthcare scheme, which would be the largest tax increase in state history. The Illinois House unanimously rejected the tax in May 2007, but Blagojevich has still not abandoned his health care and tax-hike plans.
Public School Transparency:
Public school teachers need to fully disclose budget information. Currently, school districts resist efforts to report revenues and expenditures in a clear, understandable standardized format. Illinois taxpayers are currently spending over $20 billion dollars to educate 2 million public school students.
The School Transparency Project, an effort of The Champion, www.thechampion.org, posts all public school teacher and administrator salaries since 1999.
Action Groups
Taxpayers' Federation of Illinois
www.taxpayfedil.org
NationalTaxpayers United of Illinois
www.ntui.org
The Champion Foundation
www.thechampion.org
School Choice Illinois
www.schoolchoiceillinois.org
Civic Federation
www.civicfed.org
Citizens for Fair Assessments and Taxes
http://www.fairtaxes.net/index.html
Better Government Association
http://www.bettergov.org
Think Tanks
Heartland Institute
www.heartland.org
Illinois Policy Institute
www.illinoispolicyinstitute.org
Blogs
Education Matters
www.educationmatters.us
Illini Pundit
www.illinipundit.com
Scottish Right
http://scottishright.squarespace.com/the-illinois-blog/
Illinois Review
http://www.illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/
Paulie's Point
http://htsblog.blogspot.com/
Windy Pundit
http://www.windypundit.com/
The Republic of Biloxi
http://www.biloxi.webloggin.com/
Resources
Illinois Electronic Documents Initiative
www.iledi.org
Illinois State Board of Elections
www.elections.state.il.us
Find-it! Illinois
www.finditillinois.org
Illinois Statistical Abstract
http://www.igpa.uiuc.edu/Abstract/default.htm
Local Governments in Illinois
http://www.ioc.state.il.us/office/localgovt/index.cfm
Illinois Census Data
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17000.html
Political News
Stateline Illinois
http://www.stateline.org/live/states/Illinois
Chicago Daily Observer
http://cdobs.com/
The Capitol Fax Blog
http://www.thecapitolfaxblog.com/
U.S. Politics Today - Illinois
http://uspolitics.einnews.com/illinois/
