Is Illinois better off in 2014 than it was four years ago? In 2010 we pored over a virtual library of statistics to assess where Illinois stood relative to other states and produced a chart much like this one. Today we replicate that exercise as closely as the data permit, with comparisons to Illinois' national stature in 2010. By economic and jobs measures, Illinois has fallen further. By some education metrics, Illinois has improved. Our kids are still chubby.
As you read, ask yourself the questions we posed in 2010: Is this the state where my family, my company, my career can thrive? Is this the Illinois I want my generation to bequeath to tomorrow's, and to the one after that? Or do I want to send Illinois in a different direction?
Raising one of these rankings on Nov. 4 — voter turnout — can be a first step toward boosting Illinois' standing nationwide. In future endorsement editorials we'll discuss which candidates are likeliest to improve the distressed state of this state.
ECONOMY AND JOBS
States for business: Worse (now 48th, was 46th in 2010): Illinois is among the worst states for business, says Chief Executive magazine. The Wall Street Journal on March 20 listed Illinois "near the top of any fair survey" for worst-run state in America.
Business climate: Worse (now 31st, was 30th): The business tax climate also is going in the wrong direction, according to the Tax Foundation. Illinois has dipped from an already below-average ranking in 2010.
Job creation: Still 48th: No surprise, then, that employers are steering clear. The American Legislative Exchange Council says Illinois' rate of job creation trails 47 other states, leading only Ohio and Michigan.
Unemployment: Worse (now second-worst, was ninth): The latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data — for January, seasonally adjusted — rank unemployment rates from a high of 9.2 percent in Rhode Island to a low of 2.6 percent in North Dakota. At 8.7 percent, Illinois ties with Nevada for second-worst. Illinois now has 376,099 fewer nonfarm jobs than in January 2008 — a drop of 5.9 percent.
Overall economic performance: Worse (now 47th, was 38th): Our overall economic performance, based on broad variables such as gross domestic product, has declined sharply and now ranks among the very lowest of the states, ALEC calculates.
Economic outlook: Worse (now 48th, was 47th): Worse yet, the same study says our economic outlook is miserable and dropping — due to factors such as burdensome taxes and a high number of public employees as a share of the population. Illinois ranked a somewhat better 43rd in 2008.
Household income: Worse (now 17th, was 16th): Median household income of $55,137 — the amount of money coming in — has fallen. In inflation-adjusted dollars, it has dropped $1,098 per Illinois household from $56,235 in 2008, says the Census Bureau. Among other states, Maryland tops the list with a median income of $71,122; Mississippi trails at $37,095.
Poverty: Still 27th: The Census Bureau says 14.7 percent of Illinois' population lived below the poverty level in 2012, up from 12.2 percent in 2008. Mississippi topped this list with 24.2 percent; New Hampshire had the lowest rate, at 10 percent.
Workers' compensation: Better (now fourth-worst, was third): Workers' compensation reform in Illinois has helped, but not enough to make the state competitive, according to a study of insurance premium rates by the state of Oregon. Only Alaska, Connecticut and California were charging higher rates as of 2012.
Road system: Better (now 34th, was 40th): The Reason Foundation's Annual Highway Report released in July says the state's road system has improved in overall performance and efficiency, especially its rural interstates. But it's costly: Illinois spends almost twice as much per mile as the national average.
GOVERNANCE
Number of local governments: Still first (but slightly better at 6,963 units of government): Illinois has the highest number of local governments in the nation. Illinois reduced the number by a paltry 31 in the five years after 2007, when the Census Bureau counted 6,994 local governments. Texas ranked a distant second, with 5,147.
State and local tax burden: Worse (11th-worst in 2010, was 21st in 2008): Taxes are up. Illinois' state and local tax burden as a percentage of total income was 10.2 percent in 2010 — the latest year available — according to the Tax Foundation. That calculation didn't include the impact of the Illinois income tax increase of 2011. The percentages range from 12.8 percent in New York down to 7 percent in Alaska. In a separate tally of sales tax rates, the Tax Foundation found that Illinois ranks 10th-highest among states as of 2014.
Public pension system: Still 50th: A February report from the Pew Center on the States ranks Illinois dead last in the funding of its public pension system.
HEALTH
Childhood obesity: Worse (now ninth-worst, was 10th): In a troubling sign for the present and future health of Illinois residents, the state ranks near the top in the rate of childhood obesity for kids ages 10 to 17 as of 2011 — the latest data available — according to the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Health care systems: Better (now 32nd, was 39th): The federal Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality finds some progress but still ranks Illinois below average for the overall performance of its health care systems — including hospitals and nursing homes. Avoidable admissions for chronic diseases such as diabetes are a particular weakness. Among Illinois residents, 22.6 percent, or 2.9 million people, receive Medicaid health care for the poor.
EDUCATION
Education performance: Better (now 28th, was 38th): According to ALEC's measure of overall education performance, including such factors as teacher quality and access to charter schools, Illinois has improved, but it's still below average.
Education spending: Worse (now 22nd, was 18th): Illinois lost ground compared with other states in education spending per child for elementary and secondary schools, according to the Census Bureau. Illinois schools are spending more: Since the 2007-08 school year, the Illinois State Board of Education says that Illinois public schools raised spending to $13,852 from $12,363 in local, state and federal money per student. The latest total, for the 2012-13 school year, was $28.5 billion for 2.1 millionstudents, up slightly from the year before.
Preschool: Still first: Illinois leads the nation in the percentage of 3-year-olds served by state-funded preschool, according to the Illinois State Board of Education. But for 4-year-olds, this state has dropped to 17th, from 13th as of 2010.
High school graduation rate: Better (now 14th, was 19th): Illinois' high school graduation rate for all students, 82 percent as of 2011-12, ranked 14th in the country, an improving performance, although still behind national leader Iowa's 89 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Public higher education: Better (now 22nd, was 35th): Per capita spending on public higher education ranked better as of 2011 than in 2006, at a level slightly above average among the states, according to the Illinois Board of Higher Education.
STATE OF MIND
Volunteer work: Better (now, 27th, was 29th): Feeling smug about the amount of volunteer work Illinoisans perform? Don't. In Utah, residents put in more than twice as many volunteer hours as their Land of Lincoln counterparts. New York residents put in the least, according to the Corporation for National & Community Service, a federal agency.
Voter turnout: Worse (now tied for 31st, was 29th): Nor is our voter turnout rate anything to admire. Even in the 2012 general election, with favorite son Barack Obama leading the Democratic ticket, Illinois tied for 31st among states in the percentage of registered voters casting ballots at 58.9 percent, according to the U.S. Elections Project, a research center at George Mason University. In this year's primary election, Cook County and DuPage County reported record low turnouts. In Chicago, barely 16 percent of registered voters bothered to participate in this fundamental expression of citizenship.
In two categories — workers' compensation costs and health care rankings — the sources of indicators we cited in 2010 don't offer consistent rankings today. We've substituted comparable indicators. We also don't have updates for two data points we cited in 2010, a state happiness index and an environmental ranking of the most toxic metropolitan areas in the U.S.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-state-of-illinois-2014-edit-20140330,0,6209598.story?page=2
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