THE IMPACT OF CONSTRUCTION APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS IN MINNESOTA: A RETURN-ON-INVESTMENT ANALYSIS

Construction is the 3rd fastest growing industry in Minnesota. Over the next decade, construction employment is projected to expand by 9 percent in Minnesota, and 7-in-10 contractors already report difficulties in filling skilled craft positions. For many young Minnesota workers, enrolling in a registered apprenticeship program is a better option than attending college. Construction apprenticeship … Read more

THE FINANCIAL IMPACT OF LEGALIZING MARIJUANA IN ILLINOIS

There is significant public support for legalizing, regulating, and taxing recreational marijuana in Illinois. Fully 66 percent of registered voters in Illinois support legalizing marijuana, including a bi-partisan majority of Democrats and Republicans. Furthermore, 10 states and the District of Columbia have already legalized recreational marijuana. This report finds that high taxpayer costs for law … Read more

STATE PREVAILING WAGE LAWS REDUCE RACIAL INCOME GAPS IN CONSTRUCTION: IMPACTS BY TRADE, 2013-2015

Despite acknowledging that state prevailing wage laws increase the incomes of blue-collar construction workers, critics of the laws dubiously claim that they have discriminatory effects– particularly against African American workers. This report, authored jointly by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute (ILEPI) and Project for Middle Class Renewal (PMCR) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, … Read more

THE POTENTIAL ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF A HIGHLY AUTOMATED CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY: WHAT IF CONSTRUCTION BECOMES THE NEXT MANUFACTURING?

What if construction is the next manufacturing, with automation replacing hundreds of thousands of middle-class workers over the next generation? In the future, technological changes that displace human labor in the construction industry could have consequences for workers, families, and the U.S. economy. This report is a theoretical assessment of the potential economic impacts of … Read more

ALTERNATIVE STATE AND LOCAL OPTIONS TO FUND PUBLIC K-12 EDUCATION IN ILLINOIS 

Illinois needs to revamp its system of funding public education. Currently, school districts receive the bulk of their revenue from property taxes. With relatively high property tax rates and funding inequities across the state, raising property taxes in Illinois is often not an option for school districts. There are alternative policies that can be enacted … Read more

POLICIES TO REDUCE AFRICAN-AMERICAN UNEMPLOYMENT

The City of Chicago is experiencing extremely high rates of African-American unemployment compared to the rest of the nation. This report, conducted by researchers at the Illinois Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, seeks to understand the causes of high African-American unemployment in Chicago … Read more