The Illinois Policy Institute has closely monitored the impact of COVID-19 restrictions on businesses in Illinois relative to other states.
According to their data, during one year of pandemic protocols in Illinois:
· 50% of small businesses in the food services and accommodations industry and 51% of small businesses in the leisure and hospitality industry have closed, compared to before the pandemic. These were the most affected sectors in Illinois.
· Nearly 38% of Illinois small businesses in the educational and health services industry are still closed, the sixth most in the nation.
· Over 30% of small businesses in the transportation industry are still closed in Illinois, the eight-most in the nation.
· Nearly 34% of small retail businesses have closed, eighth-most in the nation.
Meanwhile, Governor J. B. Pritzker has proposed new business taxes worth nearly $1 billion.
Illinois statistics are among the worst in the nation but Missouri businesses have still suffered to the tune of a twenty-five percent closure rate.
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