The Illinois poverty rate hovers above “pre” recession levels at about 14 percent, according to Census numbers released Thursday. Meanwhile, income in Illinois is stagnant, according to numbers crunched by the Chicago-based Heartland Alliance. This is likely a consequence of the state's budget woes, says Kimberly Drew, an economic security specialist at the alliance.
"Many of our anti-poverty programs are essentially imploding because they are not receiving funding. And this has very real consequences in people's lives."
Drew says cuts in social programs because of the budget impasse are likely to worsen the effects of poverty in the state. In 2011, the poverty rate climbed as high as 15-percent in Illinois.
