By: Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner
We recently wrote about Illinois. bad economic growth and how Illinois residents suffer from the state’s bad policies. Since Governor JB Pritzker took office in 2019, Illinois has had the 10th-worst GDP growth rate in the country, no net job creation, and Illinois has consistently had one of the worst unemployment rates in the country (currently the 5th-worst). ).
The newest The Bureau of Economic Analysis’s GDP release provides more bad news for the start of 2023, although of course it’s only a quarter of the data and is still subject to revision.
Illinois’ real annual growth rate was a meager 0.25% in the first quarter of 2023, making it the fifth-worst in the country. Only four states grew more slowly: Rhode Island, Alabama, Arkansas, and West Virginia.
In contrast, all of Illinois’ neighbors saw faster growth — notably Iowa, which grew at a CAGR of 5.23%. Nebraska and North Dakota were the country’s big winners, with GDP soaring 12% on an annualized basis.
We’ll have to wait and see how the full year plays out, but the first quarter doesn’t bode well for Illinois given that the state previously posted an inflation-adjusted growth rate of just 0.7% for all of 2022. Illinois ranked 28th nationwide for GDP growth last year.
Low to zero growth rates mean, all else being equal, fewer jobs, lower incomes, and overall fewer opportunities for Illinois residents.
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