Illinois Policy Institute

Illinois Policy Institute
Basic facts
Location:	Chicago, Ill.
Type:	501(c)(3)
Affiliation:	Nonpartisan
Top official:	Matt Paprocki, President and CEO
Year founded:	2002
Website:	Official website

The Illinois Policy Institute (IPI) is a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan research organization dedicated to supporting free market principles and liberty-based public policy initiatives. The group participates at the state and local level.

Background

Greg Blankenship founded IPI in 2002 to build a "pro-growth and pro-market movement in Illinois." In 2007, John Tillman became the CEO and relaunched IPI, leading to an increase in the organization's influence and an expansion of its revenue. Tillman also founded Think Freely Media, Government Accountability Alliance, Liberty Justice Center, and the Illinois Opportunity Project. According to the Illinois Times, under Tillman, "[T]he organization’s total appearances in print, radio and television have jumped from 51 in 2007 to more than 620 in 2009 ... Tillman has watched the Institute’s revenues jump from about $341,500 in 2007, the year he joined, to about $1.54 million in 2009."

Matt Paprocki was appointed IPI's president and CEO in 2019 and 2021, respecitvely. As of August 2025, IPI's policy issues included: "budget and tax, education, good government, labor, jobs and growth, and poverty."

According to the IPI website, its mission was as follows:

“

The Illinois Policy Institute believes: That civil and personal liberties must be protected and preserved. Illinois should be a place where people of all talents, interests and cultural backgrounds can succeed with hard work and ingenuity. In effective, efficient, honest and transparent government that is accountable to taxpayers and residents in need, not political special interests. That the best policies empower people – and limit the power of government. That a public pension system that threatens to bankrupt our state, drive down economic growth and evaporate retirements for public-sector workers is immoral — but that modest reforms can solve this crisis. Property taxes must be brought under control so people are not forced out of their homes. Workers deserve the right to choose whether a labor union serves their values and interests. Economic policy should focus on creating jobs and opportunities for all. Voters deserve choices at the ballot box and no politician is entitled to a 'safe' seat. Each child should have access to educational opportunities that prepare them for the future.

”

Leadership

As of August 2025, the following were listed as IPI's leadership:

• Matt Paprocki, President and CEO
• Chris Andriesen, Senior vice president
• Amy Korte, Executive vice president
• Jim Long, Vice president, Government Affairs
• Austin Jack, Vice president, External Relations
• Austin Berg, Vice president, Marketing

Work and activities

Legislative and policy work

Chicago Policy Center

As of August 2025, IPI issued policy recommendations through reports and news published under its Chicago Policy Center. The center worked to bring "responsible government principles and healthy civic engagement to Chicago’s political structure and culture." Reports included topics such as career-first education, proposing a Chicago city charter, fiscal responsibility, affordable housing, and enhancing voter participation.

The Center for Poverty Solutions

As of August 2025, IPI issued policy recommendations through reports and news published under The Center for Poverty Solutions. The center worked to "bring free-market solutions to ... defeat poverty and build self-worth." Reports included topics such as social mobility, occupational licensing reform, and reforming welfare benefits.

2024 activities

According to IPI's 2024 Annual Report, the organization "deployed [its audience] to win battles throughout [Illinois], passing pension reform ballot questions, defeating [Chicago Mayor] Brandon Johnson’s real estate transfer tax by record numbers and exposing the corrupt practices of the Chicago Teachers Union, whose public approval [it] reduced from 70% to 28%."

Notable endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

This section displays endorsements this organization made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.

Notable ballot measure endorsements by Illinois Policy Institute

Measure	Position	Outcome
Illinois Amendment 1, Right to Collective Bargaining Measure (2022)  source	Oppose	Approved

Affiliations

As of August 2025, IPI partnered with Illinois Policy, an independent, nonpartisan 501(c)(4) advocacy organization.

As of August 2025, IPI was a member of the State Policy Network, an organization of 64 state-based affiliates and more than 110 national nonprofits. The organization said its mission was "to catalyze thriving, durable freedom movements in every state, anchored with high-performing independent think tanks." The State Policy Network said it worked with network members "by helping them build Durable Freedom Infrastructure, providing strategy support, targeted grants, leadership training, and importantly, intentional and frequent connections to their peers so they can test and replicate success from state to state."

Finances

The following is a breakdown of Illinois Policy Institute's revenues and expenses from 2015 to 2022. The information comes from the Internal Revenue Service.

Illinois Policy Institute financial data 2015-2022

Year	Revenue	Expenses
2015	$5.8 million	$5.0 million
2016	$6.6 million	$7.0 million
2017	$8.6 million	$8.7 million
2018	$7.8 million	$5.9 million
2019	$7.9 million	$7.1 million
2020	$7.5 million	$7.3 million
2021	$9.9 million	$9.6 million
2022	$5.3 million	$7.8 million

See also

• What is an influencer?
• State Policy Network

External links

• Illinois Policy Institute
• Illinois Policy Institute Instagram
• Illinois Policy Institute X
• Illinois Policy Institute YouTube