September Illinois Flash Index remained steady
October 10, 2024
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August Illinois Flash Index declined for the fourth straight month
September 09, 2024
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June University of Illinois System Flash Index fell slightly
July 07, 2024
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IGPA member Jonathan Coppess discusses Farm Bill Proposals to Enhance Supplemental Coverage Option (Farm Doc Daily)
June 06, 2024
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May University of Illinois System Flash Index fell slightly
June 06, 2024
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IGPA member Jonathan Coppess talks about ag issues in state and national politics (Illinois Farmer Today)
May 05, 2024
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Interim IGPA Director David Merriman discusses tax increment financing for Rays stadium (Tampa Bay Times)
May 05, 2024
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Finding the Balance: State Fiscal Sustainability and Local Government Fiscal Challenges
May 05, 2024
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April University of Illinois System Flash Index increases for the third month in a row
May 05, 2024
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IGPA’s Interim Director David Merriman gives analysis after Gov. Pritzker’s budget address on NPR’s The 21st Show (NPR)
February 02, 2024
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IGPA’s Interim Director David Merriman joins NPR’s The 21st Show to preview Gov. Pritzker’s budget address (NPR)
February 02, 2024
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IGPA’s Interim Director David Merriman previews Gov. Pritzker’s budget address (Chicago Tribune)
February 02, 2024
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IGPA’s Interim Director David Merriman comments on Chicago Mayor Johnson’s borrowing plan (WBEZ)
February 02, 2024
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IGPA’s Interim Director David Merriman discusses the proposed state budget (CBSNews)
February 02, 2024
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IGPA’s Beverly Bunch Warns of Fiscal Cliff for Illinois (The Center Square)
December 12, 2023
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Recovering from a COVID (Spending) Fever
March 03, 2023
When the state of Illinois’ 2022 fiscal year ended on June 30, 2022, the state and the nation had endured more than 27 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite a plethora of health, societal, and economic challenges, Illinois emerged from this period in its strongest fiscal position in more than two decades. This fortuitous result was in part due to the exceptional generosity of federal aid but also was attributable to surges in economic activity and own source tax revenue. State spending also rose but much more slowly than revenue. The net result was the first substantially positive fiscal balance since 1998. While this good news may be cause to celebrate, we caution that Illinois’ fiscal situation remains tenuous and is likely to require diligence and restraint to remain healthy…
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Assessing Illinois’ Fiscal Future After an Influx of Federal Funds
March 03, 2023
As the U.S. continues to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath, state governments are faced with the challenge of prudent fiscal management considering the pandemic’s uncertain course into the near future. However, as reported elsewhere, states' revenues have largely fared better than expected at the pandemic’s onset. Illinois is no exception. Unprecedented federal stimulus and other measures have helped boost Illinois’ revenues beyond initial projections in 2021. Nominal revenue across all funds rose to $91.4 billion in 2021. Total expenditures rose to $92.3 billion in 2021. The temporary influx of federal funds and the pandemic driven increase in yearly expenditures and revenues makes it difficult to fully capture the change in Illinois’ long term fiscal health. Both spending and revenues have increased significantly beyond their long-term trends. This…
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February U of I Flash Index increased slightly
March 03, 2023
Urbana – The U of I Flash Index for February 2023 increased to 103.4 from the 103.1 level in January, fueled by strong Illinois state revenues. The Illinois economy is still growing moderately after the surge of the recovery from the COVID recession. “In what has become a repetitious summary over the last six months, the Illinois and national economies still provide no clear signals of whether a soft landing or modest recession is in store later this year.” Giertz said in fact, a third possibility has been suggested, one of no landing at all with continued modest growth. The unemployment rate remains low, inflation is moderating although not as rapidly as the Federal Reserve would like, consumer spending continues at a rapid pace, and supply bottlenecks are easing. However, the housing market is…
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January U of I Flash Index continued to decline slowly
February 02, 2023
Urbana – The U of I Flash Index for January 2023 continued to decline slowly, falling to 103.1 from the 103.3 level in December 2022. The lower index reading does not mean the Illinois economy is contracting because any reading above 100 indicates growth. “This extends the slow decline of the index that began in May of last year. This reflects the slowing of growth after the remarkable recovery from the steep decline during the beginning of the Covid crisis. Illinois and the national economies are still growing but at a slower rate.” Giertz said the mixed economic signals that have characterized recent months continue to make it difficult to determine whether the slowing economy is moving toward a soft landing or a recession in 2023. On the positive side,…
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Replenish, Replace, Repair: How Illinois is Using its ARPA Aid
January 01, 2023
In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments across the United States found themselves grappling with a public health crisis while simultaneously experiencing sharp declines in revenue collections. For the State of Illinois, this situation was especially challenging as it had little in reserve funds and billions in backlogged bills. Illinois’ fiscal challenges had been building for years, and so the fiscal effects of the pandemic compounded the state’s financial predicament. In this article, we focus on the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) program, which set aside $350 billion inflexible federal aid to states, counties, cities, Tribal governments, territories, and the District of Columbia. Under that program, Illinois’ state government was allocated $8.1 billion in federal aid that state lawmakers have a relatively broad level of…
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