IL Attorney General Collection Highest in Almost a Decade

Illinois' Attorney General Lisa Madigan says the state generated more than $1.1 billion in revenue through litigation and collection efforts in 2012. That’s the largest annual amount collected in nearly a decade. More than half the money came from collections litigation, including funds from child support, damage to state property, unpaid educational loans, fines and penalties. The rest was split between tobacco litigation and estate tax revenues. The sum doesn't include millions of dollars the attorney general’s office recovered through mediation and litigation. Those funds are usually given as restitution to the parties involved. Officials estimate they generated more than $36 for every tax dollar they spent in 2012.