Under statute, the state is responsible for paying county fairs 66.67 percent of what organizers spent on agricultural premiums. That includes activities related to horticulture, poultry, livestock, horse races and rodeos. A spokesman for the Illinois Association of Agricultural Fairs said fair organizers “have never received that” — in recent years, they were reimbursed 25 percent of eligible costs.
A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.