In closing arguments, federal prosecutors describe the “Make Mike Madigan Money Plan.” Federal prosecutors continued their closing arguments Wednesday in the trial of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, accusing the longtime Democratic powerbroker of using Chicago Ald. Danny Solis’ positions of power “to gain private benefits.” […]
“He (Madigan) wanted Solis to reach out the developers because the developers weren’t going to say no to Danny Solis – not when Solis held those cards in his hand as alderman and zoning board chair,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane MacArthur told the jury in her closing arguments Thursday. […]
MacArthur alleged Madigan chose to ignore Solis’ flagrantly illegal suggestions because he was more concerned with his “desire for private gain,” which she dubbed the “Make Mike Madigan Money Plan.”
That plan, the prosecutor said, stretched to all 23 counts Madigan is charged with, including alleged bribery schemes involving electric utility Commonwealth Edison and telecom giant AT&T Illinois.
Both companies indirectly hired Madigan allies who performed little to no work for their monthly paychecks, actions the feds claim were bribes to the speaker in order to grease the wheels for easier passage of their preferred legislation in Springfield. ComEd also hired and contracted with other Madigan-connected people, though prosecutors spent time Wednesday and Thursday once again painting those hires as bribes. […]
MacArthur also took issue with Madigan’s explanation for his delayed confrontation with Solis given the “great deal of surprise and concern” the former speaker testified that Solis’ “quid pro quo” comment had caused him.
“Danny Solis was not subtle when he was talking to Madigan about this arrangement,” she said. “Madigan could’ve said, ‘Danny, stop. I don’t do business this way.’”
Instead, MacArthur told the jury, Madigan said, “Yeah, okay.”
“Your common sense tells you that ‘quid pro quo’ for public officials (should be) the equivalent of one of those ‘wrong way’ signs on highway offramp that tells you to turn around,” she said. “Madigan didn’t turn around. He kept moving forward.”
Read the rest of this article from Capitol News Illinois.
CONSTITUTIONAL CHALLENGES
Illinois Supreme Court to decide on law limiting where people can sue state. It’s now up to the Illinois Supreme Court to decide if a recently enacted state law limiting where people can file constitutional challenges against the state to Sangamon and Cook counties, not any of the other 100 counties.
The case Piasa Armory vs. Kwame Raoul out of Madison County challenges the Illinois Firearm Industry Responsibility Act. But that’s not what the Illinois Supreme Court heard about Wednesday. The lawsuit included a challenge to a recently enacted measure to limit where the lawsuit could be heard to Sangamon County.
The circuit court granted plaintiff’s motion for partial summary judgment on the venue limiting law, concluding that the venue statute violates the due-process rights of those not residing in or injured in Sangamon and/or Cook Counties. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul appealed directly to the Illinois Supreme Court.
Deputy Solicitor General Alex Hemmer told the Illinois Supreme Court Wednesday that judges in Sangamon and Cook counties have more experience with such cases. Justice David Overstreet pressed the issue.
“A judge in Sangamon County or Cook County instead of one of the judges that citizens of one of these circuits have elected,” Overstreet said. “Why is that not unreasonable, why is that not blatant forum shopping?”
Read more from The Center Square.
AGRICULTURE
Record Illinois soybean crop reported. The 2024 Illinois soybean harvest, which totaled 688 million bushels, set an all-time harvest record in the Prairie State. The previous high mark had been 667 million bushels in 2018. The Illinois Soybean Association reported this week that Illinois farmers had harvested beans from 10.75 million acres of Illinois land. This land area was approximately 40 percent of the 27 million acres of farmland in Illinois. From this acreage, Illinois farmers harvested a yield of 64 bushels per acre.
More than 99% of the soybeans grown in Illinois are processed for eventual use by humans. Illinois workers and food scientists have pioneered the development of production processes for American soybeans. In Illinois, approximately 2,640 manufacturing companies process crops grown in the Land of Lincoln and neighboring states, making Illinois one of the largest concentrations of food-related businesses in the world. In addition to foodstuffs, soybean products can be used to make products such as soy-based biodiesel fuel.
ECONOMY
CGFA reports on where Illinois stands in terms of state tax revenues, tax burdens. The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability (CGFA) has released a report, “2024 Illinois’ National Rankings”, that summarizes the tax rates, tax revenues, government spending, and employment trends of Illinois as compared with other states. Data from this summary can be used to gauge the strengths and weaknesses of Illinois, and the performance of our state government, as compared with the state and local governments of other U.S. states.
The CGFA report includes additional evidence that the burden of taxation weighs more heavily on Illinois residents than on residents of other states. On a per capita basis, Illinois’ state government tax revenue was $5,019 per capita in calendar year 2023. This was the 13th highest per capita revenue number among the 50 states and was $744 above the national average of government revenue per capita. The $5,019 figure reflects income taxes, sales taxes, and other taxes and fees that make up State of Illinois total revenue.
In terms of personal income taxes paid annually to the State of Illinois on a per capita basis, Illinoisans’ payments of $1,738 in 2023 was 16th in the U.S. Many states have lower personal income tax rates than does Illinois, and six states – including the large states of Florida and Texas – have no personal income tax.
In terms of sales taxes paid annually to the State of Illinois on a per capita basis, Illinoisans’ payments of $1,235 in 2023 was 31st in the U.S. CGFA notes that this figure does not include sales taxes charged on top of the state sales tax by units of local government located within Illinois. For taxable goods purchased within the city limits of Chicago, consumers must pay a sales tax of 10.25%, which is more than double the 5.0% sales tax revenue that goes to Springfield. Other segments of sales taxation charged in Chicago include a 1.25% “local share” that is divided amongst local governments, a 1.75% Cook County sales tax, a 1.25% city of Chicago sales tax, and a 1.0% Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) sales tax.
In terms of motor fuel taxes paid annually to the State of Illinois on a per capita basis, Illinoisans’ payments of $207 in 2023 was 13th in the U.S. This reflects the 48.1-cent/gallon tax and environmental remediation fee package charged by Illinois at the pump. In addition, Illinois charges sales taxes on motor fuel, creating a total burden of 66.5 cents per gallon in 2023. CGFA reports that on January 1, 2024, on a per-gallon basis Illinois’ total motor fuel tax-and-fee burden was the second highest in the U.S. Only California charged higher taxes per gallon as of that date.
In 2023, Illinois’ state government revenues totaled 7.1% of the personal income of all Illinoisans. This was significantly higher than the same percentage collected by the state governments of four neighboring states (Kentucky – 7.0%; Iowa – 6.5%; Wisconsin – 6.3%; and Missouri – 4.6%.)
In addition to the taxes collected by the State of Illinois, Illinoisans must also pay taxes and fees to local governments. These taxes are headed by property taxes and by local sales taxes. Local governments also weigh heavily on the lives of Illinois residents and consumers. In 2022 – CGFA used a different year for this compilation than the calendar year 2023 year used for State revenues – Illinois’ local governments charged $7,672 per capita. As measured by a percentage of Illinoisans’ personal income in that year, this was the 8th highest burden imposed by local governments in the U.S.
A breakout of local tax revenues that looked specifically at property taxes generated a similar ranking. Illinois local governments charged $2,606 per capita in local property taxes for calendar year 2022, ranking 6th highest in the U.S. This was exceeded only by the traditionally high-property-tax states grouped around New York City: New Jersey, Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, and Massachusetts.
A simultaneous examination by CGFA of ongoing trends in Illinois job creation and unemployment indicates that our state’s high-tax status could be holding back Illinois private-sector activity, economic growth, and population trends. In October 2024, Illinois’ unemployment rate of 5.3% made the Prairie State the 48th worst in the country.
Illinois’ overall stagnant population picture, as measured by the 2020 U.S. Census and by other enumerations, could be tied to this high-tax/low-employment picture. In the 2020 nationwide population count, Illinois scored 48th in population growth/decline. Only three states – Illinois, Mississippi, and West Virginia – were counted have having shrank in population during the 2010-2020 ten-year period. The stagnant Illinois census population numbers were acknowledged by CGFA in the analysis.
JOBS
Fortune Brands Innovations makes Deerfield HQ announcement. Already a major presence in the Chicago area, Fortune Brands Innovations this week announced plans to consolidate its U.S. regional offices into one campus headquarters facility in Deerfield, Illinois. The jobs affiliated with this headquarters activity will move from Ohio, Wisconsin, and other states to Illinois. The Lake County facility, with access to existing Chicago-area superhighways, is expected to house over 1,000 employees by December 2027.
Historically a diversified firm, Fortune Brands accompanied its headquarters announcement with signals that it intends to further concentrate on its ownership and operation of numerous nameplates and identities in the fields of home and commercial security. The business firm sees its consolidation of headquarters operations into a single Illinois location, with a focus on the creation and expansion of new and innovative digital-based security products, as a major step forward in its operation and identity management.
Stellantis renews its commitment to Belvidere assembly plant. The Belvidere assembly complex, with half a century of experience making cars and light trucks for Chrysler and Jeep, closed in February 2023. The closure idled more than 1,000 workers based in the Northern Illinois plant.
This week, Stellantis announced plans to invest at least $1.2 billion to reopen the Belvidere assembly plant. Heavy investment will be required to completely refit and re-tool the complex. A full reopen will lead to the hiring of approximately 1,500 workers in Boone County, Illinois. Stellantis currently plans to build a mid-size truck, with a nameplate to be named later, at the Belvidere complex. The reopening was tentatively scheduled to take place in 2027.