* Let’s get back to that Paul Simon Public Policy Institute poll, shall we? Respondents were asked…

Do you favor or oppose a proposal to make permanent the temporary state income tax increase passed in 2011?

As we’ve already discussed, 60 percent opposed making the tax hike permanent, while a mere 26.5 percent favored making it permanent.

* So, a follow-up question was asked of respondents who said they were opposed to making the tax increase permanent…

The Governor’s budget office estimates that if the temporary tax increase expires, it will add $2 billion dollars a year to the state’s budget deficit. If you were convinced this was the case, would you favor or oppose making permanent the temporary income tax increase?

Even with that information about a $2 billion hit to the budget, 74 percent still opposed making the tax hike permanent and just 17 percent changed their minds. 49 percent of Democrats still opposed making the tax hike permanent, versus just 38 percent who changed their minds and backed it. 47 percent of self-identified liberals remained opposed to making the tax hike permanent, compared to 41 percent who changed their minds.

* Moving along to pensions, respondents were asked…

Last year the legislature passed and the governor signed a pension reform bill. It is designed to save Illinois’ under-funded public employee pension system $100 billion dollars over 30 years, and would eventually fully fund the system. It would decrease the amount workers’ pay into the program, but would also cut cost-of-living increases for state retirees. Generally speaking do you approve or disapprove of the new law?

47 percent approved of the law, while 39 percent disapproved of it. 48 percent of Democrats and Republicans approved of the new law, while 46 percent of independents approved.

Conservatives and Republicans were more likely to strongly disapprove of the new pension law (24 and 23, respectively) than liberals and Democrats (17 and 18). That’s quite an interesting result, considering the firestorm of controversy the bill ignited on the labor left end of the spectrum during the primary season.