(The Cenyer Square) – Gov. JB Pritzker says his administration has made progress in bolstering the state’s finances and improving its overall economy. However, some lawmakers argue there is still much more work to be done.
Pritzker attended the Business Day hosted by the Illinois Manufacturers Association and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association and spoke about Illinois’ economy and opportunities to grow business statewide.
“Just a few months ago, Illinois’ economy surpassed $1 trillion in GDP. We are the fifth state in the nation to reach this milestone. It’s a big deal,” Pritzker said. “We are now second in the country in new business investment per capita.”
Discussing the importance of building a healthy workforce, the governor said he has worked with the Illinois General Assembly to pass measures.
“I’ve been working with lawmakers to get some things done that I think have made a real difference,” Pritzker said. “We’ve passed incentives for electric vehicle OEMs and suppliers, we’ve created attractive new tax breaks for chipmakers, we’ve launched a closure fund to make Illinois one of the most attractive places in the country for companies based outside of Illinois to. “
Republican lawmakers say things are not as good as Pritzker has cited.
State Assemblyman Mike Marron, R-Fithian, told The Center Square that all of the improvements Pritzker mentioned were not taken up by Illinois citizens.
“What I find troubling is that we are in a good position financially right now, but that has come at the expense of hard working men and women in the state of Illinois and people on fixed incomes who have seen their cost of living go up,” Marron said . “I think the governor is deluding himself or living in a fantasy world if he thinks everything is great out there.”
Illinois also has the highest pension debt in the country, with some estimating it at over $200 billion.
State MP Adam Niemerg, R-Dieterich, said the state will keep fighting if it doesn’t address the massive debt.
“Twenty-five cents out of every dollar goes to public sector pensions in the state of Illinois, and that’s funded by taxpayers,” Niemerg said. “People are seeing that, they’re seeing that there’s cause and effect, they’re seeing that high taxes are directly related to unfunded pension obligations, and that’s a big, big problem.”
In addition to having the highest unfunded pension liabilities in the country, Illinois residents have grappled with some of the highest tax rates in the country and have seen companies like Walmart, Boeing, McDonald’s and Citadel leave the state in recent years.
Comments are closed.