Illinois continues to rank among the worst states to do business, and another major employer has announced it is leaving our state.
Do it Best Group recently announced it will relocate True Value’s headquarters from Chicago to Fort Wayne, Indiana. It is just the latest in a growing list of major companies that have chosen to move their headquarters elsewhere.
Caterpillar, Boeing, Tyson Foods, and now True Value have all left Illinois. Year after year, our state becomes a less attractive place to invest and grow a business.
This is why I continue to talk about Illinois’ struggling economy at my town halls and community events. While other states are moving forward, Illinois continues to lag behind.
The numbers tell the story:
- Illinois’ economy has grown just 6.5% since 2019, compared to 15.1% nationally.
- Personal income in Illinois has increased only 6.2%, while the national average is 13.6%. Our neighbors are doing even better, with Iowa at 16.9%, Missouri at 16.1%, and Indiana at 13.0%.
- Our 5.1% unemployment rate is the highest in the Midwest and the fourth highest in the nation.
- Since 2019, Illinois has seen just 4.5% job growth, while the national average is 8.2%. Indiana and Missouri have both outpaced us by wide margins.
It’s no surprise that another iconic Illinois institution, the Chicago Bears, is seriously considering leaving the state as well. Many are tired of the discussion, but isn’t that all the more reason to fix the problems causing it?
Illinois should be creating an environment where businesses want to expand and create jobs for our communities. That won’t happen as long as we continue to impose some of the highest taxes in the country, add more burdensome regulations, and, most importantly, fail to address the systemic problems in our corrupt state government that continue to undermine confidence in Illinois.