Illinois’ economic output grew 1.3 percent in the final quarter of 2018, trailing national gross domestic product growth of 2.2 percent during the same period and far slower than Texas’ 6.6 percent growth, which led the nation.
Numbers released by the Federal Bureau of Economic Analysis on Wednesday show Illinois’ GDP grew faster than some neighboring states, such as Indiana and Iowa, but slower than Wisconsin, Missouri and Kentucky of the final quarter of 2018.
State Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Belleville, said Illinois still trails the rest of the country. His answer is to invest in what he said is Illinois’ greatest asset: People.
“We have some of the greatest universities, we have tech-savvy individuals, we need to lead in the tech industry and become a leader in the nation,” Hoffman said.
State Rep. Mark Batinick, R-Plainfield, said Illinois needs to stop passing bad policies and cited an energy company’s recent decision to abandon plans to build an ethanol production facility in Illinois. The company said the decision was due, in part, to the state’s “anti-business” attitude.
“How much would that one company have brought in revenue, both their company directly but then the jobs and services that provide around that, right, and so that’s a large company that’s one off but you have small businesses that are leaving the state,” Batinick said.
For the entire year of 2018, Illinois’ GDP growth was 2.2 percent, slower than the national GDP growth of 2.9 percent.
Illinois Senate President John Cullerton said some of the state’s economic trouble can be blamed on former Gov. Bruce Rauner.
“The key to success in Illinois, or anywhere else for that matter, is providing stability. Right now, the reality is we are still recovering from the forced chaos of the previous administration,” he said. “You can’t grow when businesses shut their doors because the state won’t pay its bills. You can’t grow when a lack of investment in higher education sends tens of thousands of high school grads streaming out of state.”
Cullerton said adopting a progressive income tax that has higher rates for those who earn more would help improve the state’s economy.
“That’s why it’s so important for our future to update our constitution and allow for a modern, fair tax system so Illinois can own up to its responsibilities, pay its debts and invest in its future growth,” he said. “The sooner we do that, the sooner the turnaround begins.”
The numbers show Illinois didn’t just grow slower than the nation as a whole for the year, it also grew slower than neighboring Missouri and Wisconsin.
Illinois Manufacturers’ Association President Mark Denzler said neighboring states are growing faster than Illinois and it’s important to reverse the trend.
“Well certainly adding on new taxes and more regulations is not the way to do it,” Denzler said. “So things like a fairer tax system in terms of a broader base, lower rates, makes more sense than a graduated tax which is higher taxes on a shrinking sector of the population, so there are different ways to do that. Right now, we’re fighting every day to stop a lot of these regulations from taking effect.”
Illinois’ GDP did grow faster than Indiana, Iowa and Kentucky in 2018, but much slower than Washington state’s 5.7 percent for the year.
Wholesale trade and mining gains lead the way for most of the country.
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