(MCT) — Job growth is crucial to the future of Illinois. The state’s financial problems, which definitely need legislative attention on pension reform and other issues, can’t be totally solved if the state isn’t growing.
But where should that growth come from? The answer, according to a new study by the Illinois Policy Institute, is that the largest job growth in Illinois would come from the establishment of new businesses.

Using a huge database of business activity during the last several years, the Institute’s analysts paint a dismal picture of job growth in the state during the period from 1995 to 2009. In fact, Illinois ranked last among the 50 states in job creation during that period. It was one of only six states to have a negative job growth during those years.