-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
The state covers up to 65 percent of expenses for downstate transit agencies. But because of rising costs and lackluster economic growth in downstate communities that hinders sales tax revenue, funding shortfalls are growing.
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WIREPOINTS ORIGINAL STORIES
Audio and summary Illinois bill would override local law to allow homeless living in all public parks – Wirepoints
April 14, 2026
27 Comments
If this bill passes, say goodbye to local control over all Illinois parks and expect to see open drug and alcohol use, needles, no sanitation and fire hazards, but no ordinary park users.
Mark Glennon on AM560’s Morning Answer: Chicago Fiscal Crisis Worse Than Pre-Bankruptcy Detroit, HIV Surge and Public Health Threat From Open Borders Goes Unreported
April 10, 2026
2 Comments
Summary and audio linked here.
Mark Glennon on AM560’s Morning Answer: Chicago pension buyout plan mostly shifts debt rather than eliminating it, property tax surge doubles inflation over three decades
April 3, 2026
9 Comments
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
WBEZ and Chicago Sun-Times falsely blame Texas Gov. Abbott for 2020 to 2024 surge in Chicago Latino HIV, AIDS infections – Wirepoints Quickpoint
March 31, 2026
11 Comments
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
I’ll give Ben Szalinski credit for this paragraph, summarizing the symptoms of the disease plaguing Chicago’s RTA: “Chicago area transit agencies face financial challenges as federal COVID-19 funds run out and rider patterns change thanks to work-from-home policies adopted during the pandemic. Rider fares are also no longer enough to cover half of the agencies’ revenue as required by state law.That requirement was suspended during the pandemic but is set to go back into effect this summer.” The financial shortfall the executive directors caused is merely the symptom. Just as congestion, fever, and headaches are symptoms, not an illness. The… Read more »