Capital Facts

The state's fiscal news of late has been a whole lot better than just about anyone expected. March's base general funds revenue grew by $422 million versus a year ago, mainly because of stronger than expected receipts of personal and corporate income taxes and sales taxes. That follows a growth of $330 million in February's receipts.

Since 2006, federal law has capped annual interest rates on payday loans to active duty military members at 36 percent. The interest rate cap was broadened in 2015 to include several more types of personal, unsecured loans.
In Illinois, meanwhile, payday loan borrowers have been subjected to average annual interest rates of close to 300 percent.
Illinois lawmakers tried to tackle this issue in 2005, and passed a rate cap that was widely heralded. But the industry took advantage of a gaping loophole and then kept right on with their business.

For the first year or so of his administration leading up to the beginning of the pandemic, Gov. JP Pritzker's polling wasn't exactly horrible, but it was still pretty darned underwhelming. But after some spectacular crisis-induced polling spikes last year, the governor has seemingly come back down to Earth.
The first poll taken by Morning Consult after Pritzker was sworn into office in January of 2019 found his job approval rate at 40 percent, with his disapproval at 29 and 31 percent not saying either way.

Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch gave his standard reply to a question about redistricting reform last week when queried at the Chicago Economic Club, saying different people have different opinions about what a "fair map" actually is.
But then the new House Speaker leaned a bit harder into the concept of protecting minority rights when redrawing the new legislative district maps than I've heard him do in the past.