Prairie State Wire

The Illinois Republican Party is criticizing the economic performance of J.B. Pritzker’s governorship. 

“Illinois’s high taxes and low economic performance have made the state unlivable to anyone who isn’t a Democrat billionaire governor,” the Illinois Republican Party group said recently on Facebook. 

A recent Wirepoints report highlights the challenges faced by Illinois in maintaining job growth, attributing it to factors such as high property taxes, state gasoline taxes, and Pritzker's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The report reveals a decline of 70,000 jobs since Pritzker took office in 2019, with Illinois ranking 10th worst in real GDP growth from 2019 to 2022. The state's high property taxes, gas taxes, pension debt, and declining home values are identified as hindrances to job creation. 

The executive orders imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic are also seen as detrimental to businesses and entrepreneurship. 

According to the report, the departure of companies like Guggenheim Investments and a significant population decline in various counties further illustrate the struggles faced by Illinois. In the year ending July 2021, over 105,000 taxpayers left the state, resulting in a loss of $10 billion in income. 

"We will never have the most jobs as long as we have the highest property taxes in the country,” Wirepoints President Ted Dabrowski told The Center Square. “We will never have more jobs as long as we have the second-highest gas taxes in the country. We will never have more jobs if we have the biggest pension debt in the country, and we will never have more jobs if our home values continue shrinking relative to the rest of the country. We have so many things that are wrong in Illinois."

Wirepoints argues the true measure of success lies in how Illinois residents are faring under Pritzker’s leadership, and by its measures, it has been a failure. The state has fewer employed individuals compared to when Pritzker took office, and its economic growth is stagnant. Tax burdens have increased, and people are leaving the state in record numbers. Wirepoints notes the budget's overspending, lack of reform or tax relief, and what it calls financial gimmicks are likely to worsen these issues rather than improve them. Illinois has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation, and its economy has lagged behind other states. 

The Wall Street Journal produced a video that summarized the closing of significant corporate locations. 

“After years of operating in Illinois, three major companies—Boeing, Caterpillar and Citadel—are moving their headquarters out of the state. In this video, WSJ looks at the economic and political implications,” the Wall Street Journal said in the preview of the video.