Analysis examines how elevated inflation may impact Illinois’ bottom line – Center Square

According to Pew Charitable Trusts, for November, the consumer price index rose nearly 7% in Illinois over the past year. Nationally, increases ranged from a high of more than 8.3% to less than 6.1%. Justin Theal, state fiscal health officer at Pew, said, “If inflation persists, and if high prices stick around for quite some time, that does tend to lead to decreased consumer demand and then therefore decreased sales taxes for states over time."