Illinois is a trainwreck.
Fiscal mismanagement, heavy debt loads, soaring crime rates, and immense taxation levels. There’s a lot of reasons why Illinois might be the worst state in the country.
And working-age residents are taking notice.
According to the Illinois Policy Institute, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the state’s working-age population fell by 41,000 from July 2016 and July 2017, despite this segment of the population surged by 450,000 during the same time period.
It gets worse: Illinois experienced slower population growth for people between the ages of 25 and 54.
“Illinois is losing its workforce to other states because of its bad economic policies. A shrinking workforce has serious implications for the long-term health of our state’s economy,” said Orphe Divounguy, chief economist at the Illinois Policy Institute. “The state should be focused on making it an appealing decision for working-age people and young families to plant roots in Illinois through policies that will reduce the cost of doing business and improve living standards.”
Other findings during the 12-month period:
– Income growth slowed 28 percent.
– Hiring was sluggish.
– The jobless stayed unemployed 33 percent longer.
– The white population declined by 1.5 percent.
These trends are not surprising.
Here is one statistic that sums up the state’s situation: its rainy day fund would cover only 81 seconds of state spending.
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