Political Rewind: Exodus of Illinois Taxpayers Means Loss of $26 Billion for State

Editor's Note: This article was created by aggregating news articles from Illinois Statehouse News that were written by various Illinois Statehouse News reporters.

Exodus of IL taxpayers means loss of $26B in taxable revenue

Illinois’ reputation for political corruption and government mismanagement could have cost the state billions of dollars and an income tax increase.

Illinois netted a loss of 366,616 tax-paying households between 1995 and 2009, according to a study ofInternal Revenue Service figures from 1995 through 2009 released Tuesday by the Illinois PolicyInstitute, a free-market think tank with offices in Springfield and Chicago. 

Those households took with them $26 billion in taxable revenue, according to the study. In 2009 alone, Illinois lost 20,725 households and their $1.5 billion in taxable income. 

Ted Dabrowksi, vice president of policy for the institute, said the recent tax hike might have been avoided, if those taxpayers had remained in Illinois. 

“If we had more people here generating income, generating sales tax, hiring people, paying income taxes, we’d have a much better fiscal outlook,” he said. 

Illinois lost taxpayers to 42 states during the 14-year period of the study, including to the border states of Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana and Kentucky. 

The higher the net loss of taxpayers for Illinois translates into a heavier financial burden for those who remain.

Illinois could shoulder debt from faltering tuition program

Illinois may have to take responsibility for another huge debt.College Illinois! administrators and lawmakers are talking about ways in which the state can rescue the badly underfunded pre-paid college tuition program. 

A report released Monday shows College Illinois! with a March 2011 deficit topping $559 million, an increase of $28 million since June 2010. College Illinois! officials began their review in April, but they did not deliver the long overdue report until this week.

State Rep. Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, said Illinois may have an obligation to the families who believe their investments into College Illinois! would guarantee a college education for their children.

“I’m not going to use the word bailout,” Durkin said. “But I believe there is going to have to be a discussion as to what the state of Illinois’ responsibility is to this program.”