Explainer Illinois Politics Becomes the Plaything of the Rich This year’s race for governor is the King Kong vs. Godzilla of big-money politics, rendering small donors irrelevant and impacting races down the ballot as well. Jul 26, 2018 6:00 AM
Explainer Reality Check Time for Metra: The Downside of Frugality A reluctance to spend has led the suburban rail system to cars decades out of date and a bottom line that has never appeared bleaker. Jun 14, 2018 6:00 AM
Explainer Illinois’ Population Is Falling, but the Sky Isn’t Census estimates in recent years point to a shrinking Illinois, but the severity of the drop gets overstated while attempts to blame it on high taxes get overblown. Jun 7, 2018 6:00 AM
Explainer Chicago’s New City ID Opens Doors But Stokes Fears With its CityKey ID card, Chicago follows New York in launching a municipal document aimed at opening access to an array of services for residents who lack identification. But conservatives claim it's a gateway to voter fraud. May 7, 2018 4:45 PM
Explainer Pension Crisis: Top Candidates Avoid Talk About Illinois’ Top Problem The crushing pension debt that is squeezing out resources to pay for other services grew through decades of bipartisan political expediency. The candidates for governor steer clear of the topic as options to fix the crisis without pain narrow. Apr 13, 2018 6:00 AM
Explainer Illinois Tax Reform Sideshow Long on Gimmicks, Short on Solutions Politicians peddle an array of fiscal tonics to cure what ails Illinois. Rarely do they consider the property, income and sales taxes as part of a system that requires a comprehensive overhaul. Feb 21, 2018 6:00 AM
Explainer How Much Would You Pay To Avoid Traffic? Illinois and 'Congestion Pricing' An approach that borrows from Uber’s fluctuating pricing strategy and a theme park express pass is being eyed by experts to finance long-overdue improvements on the Eisenhower and other roads. Dec 1, 2017 6:00 AM
Explainer Electric Cars And Fuel Sippers Spell Doom For State Gas Tax As roads and bridges in Illinois crumble, so too does the primary source of revenue the state relies on to fix them—the gas tax. Nov 15, 2017 6:00 AM
Explainer Rauner Administration Stirs Up Uncertainty By Scaling Back Social Service Funding Following two years of tumult amid Illinois’ historic budget standoff, state funding for human service programs has become so unreliable some providers are now questioning if it might be wiser to forgo it entirely. Oct 24, 2017 6:00 AM
Explainer Illinois Circling The Toilet Bowl? This Boom Town Begs To Differ Tiny Rochelle, 80 miles west of Chicago at the intersection of Interstates 88 and 39, is on an industrial roll, blissfully ignoring a common narrative among political and business elites of an economically maligned Illinois. Oct 11, 2017 6:00 AM
