Illinois is the most inefficient state in the Midwest and the 14th-most inefficient in the country. That’s driven in part by excessive units of local government – more than in any other state. High property taxes are one result.
By Chris Coffey | Illinois Policy Institute
Illinois’ No. 2 in the nation property taxes are partly because it is No. 1 in the nation for units of government, meaning consolidating and eliminating some units could cut property taxes.
A National Business Capital report ranked Illinois the least-efficient state in the Midwest and 14th-least efficient in the country for its governments. The report evaluated states along eight metrics including units of local government per 100,000 people.
Illinois’ inefficiency is driven by almost 7,000 units of local government – the most in the U.S. – and the cost of supporting all that bureaucracy. When population is part of the calculation, Illinois is 14th in the nation in units of local government per 100,000 people because it has the sixth-highest population.
The report included local government as a metric because “while population densities and geographic size vary greatly from state to state and impact the efficiency of local governments, each local government is replicating services that – in many cases – could potentially be offered by another nearby entity.”
Illinois has by far the most units of local government of any state at almost 7,000. The Midwest has more average units of local government than other regions, but Illinois still leads. In 40 states residents live under a maximum of two layers of local government, but in Illinois 61% of residents live under at least three.
Lawmakers have failed to reduce redundancy and waste, which could cut down Illinoisans’ second-highest in the nation property taxes by consolidating or eliminating unnecessary levels of local government. Illinois has had 6,000-7,000 units of local government for 65 years.
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