A top Illinois economist is warning of danger signs for the state’s economy. Illinois has been slow to recover from the Great Recession in part because consumer spending has been what one official calls "lethargic."
Edward Boss is the chief economist for the legislature's budget forecasting agency. He says trend lines are not going in the right direction.
“Christmas didn’t turn out, and the holiday season didn’t turn out quite as robust as some of the earlier forecasts were. I think there’s a lot of uncertainties in the world. People are scared."
Officials expect a significant drop in sales tax collection this year. Overall, tax revenue could be off by more than $440-million putting a balanced budget that much further out of reach.
