As Gov. Pat Quinn gives his State of the State Address later today (yesterday), it’s important to consider this past year’s record. The last year has served as a crystal clear example that tax increases did not help Illinois’ economy nor did it help our worsening fiscal crisis.
- FLASHBACK: January 2011: Gov. Quinn Signs Record Tax Hike Into Law. Raises individual income taxes by 67 percent and corporate income taxes by 30 percent.
Since the Quinn tax hike, the state’s unemployment – previously dropping precipitously down to 9% – jumped right back up to 9.8%.
- BY THE NUMBERS: Illinois’ unemployment rate increased the most in the entire country in 2011; Now the 7th highest unemployment rate in the U.S.
While neighboring states tackle record debt and fight to make themselves the most competitive for job growth, Illinois’ heading in the other direction. Neighboring states like Missouri, Wisconsin, and Indiana have all gained jobs this year while Illinois lost over 72,000 in the past year alone.
Illinois can do better than economic policies that take money out of its people’s pockets and jobs out of Illinois. As this chart proves,Illinois is heading in the wrong direction.
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