Kendall County Times

State Rep. Mark Batinick (R-Plainfield) is calling for support for the state's small businesses after a new survey found that 44% of Illinois' small businesses were unable to pay their rent in May.

The number of Illinois' small businesses unable to pay their rent in May represented the largest percentage out of any state in the country, Advantage News reported. Many of the surveyed business owners pointed to recent rent increases and skyrocketing gas prices as causes for their inability to pay rent in full or on time.

"Small businesses play a vital role in Illinois' economy by providing local jobs, investing in communities and driving innovation across the state," Batinick wrote in a Monday, July 11 Facebook post. "It's important now more than ever that we make Illinois the best place to do business so we can continue to grow opportunities for our residents."

According to Business News Daily, Illinois is home to more than 1.2 million small businesses, which employ 45% of the state’s workforce. The state's small businesses face potential challenges related to the state's poor credit rating and large deficit, the article reported.

“The state of Illinois faces a gargantuan pension liability of more than $200 billion,” Datamation Co-founder and President Jim Collins said in Business News Daily. “This lack of fiscal management breeds concern among small business, and it is likely that the state will need to cut key functions and services.”

One year into Governor Pritzker’s mandated COVID-19 lockdowns, 35% of Illinois small businesses shuttered their doors, Illinois Policy reported. More small businesses closed in Illinois than in any other Midwestern state except for Michigan.

At the beginning of 2022, less than one third of Illinois' small businesses had reported a full recovery to pre-pandemic revenue, according to Advantage News. Of the more than two thirds of businesses that have yet to recover, many reported that they don't anticipate a full recovery until mid-2023.