The fact that Illinois’ economy seems to have done reasonably well during COVID-19 isn’t the same as saying the state government is doing well. It isn’t, the experts note, with the same huge structural deficit and billions in outstanding bills that existed before COVID-19. It will take much more than federal stimulus and a resilient economy to fix that long-term mess.
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.