Economic Impact

Illinois oil production pumps billions of dollars into the Land of Lincoln’s economy and plays a particularly important role in the economic viability of many rural areas where production occurs.

A recent RCF Economic & Financial Consulting analysis and IPRB review of the latest Illinois Department of Revenue data finds the Illinois oil exploration and production industry:

• Is responsible for 4,000 direct jobs
• Has directly and indirectly created 14,000 jobs
• Generates more than $3 billion in direct economic output each year
• Generates $770 million in annual personal and business income
• Provides royalty income for more than 30,000 Illinoisans
• Provides $330 million in annual Illinois tax revenue (and more than $700 million overall, including $380M in federal taxes)
• Has generated an average of $7.46 million per year in property tax revenue for local communities since 2007

The oil production industry is a major source of employment in several southern Illinois counties where production occurs, as illustrated in the following graphic:

Since major oil companies pulled out of the Illinois Basin in the 1980s, the Illinois oil production industry has been comprised almost entirely of small, locally-owned companies whose profits support the local economies where they operate. Nearly half of workers in the Illinois oil production industry are independent owner/operators or independent contractors, while 83 percent of E&P firms with payroll have 10 or fewer employees. Anything but “Big Oil,” Illinois oil producers are our friends and neighbors.

• White County Fact Sheet

(Oil industry support resolution | Carmi oil industry support resolution)

• Marion County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution | City of Salem oil industry support resolution)

• Lawrence County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution | City of Lawrenceville oil industry support resolution)

• Crawford County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Fayette County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Wabash County Fact Sheet ( Oil industry support resolution, City of Mt. Carmel oil industry support resolution)

• Wayne County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Clay County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Franklin County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Richland County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Clark County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Jasper County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Hamilton County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Gallatin County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Jefferson County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Edwards County Fact Sheet (Oil industry support resolution)

• Washington County Fact Sheet

In addition to the economic impact attributable to the oil production industry – also known as the “upstream” industry – Illinois’ midstream and downstream oil industries are also major economic drivers in the state, providing an additional 12,000-plus direct jobs.

Illinois is home to four refineries and leads the Midwest in refining capacity. It is also home to the Patoka Terminal, which is the second-largest crude oil storage facility in the United States. The facility hosts nearly 80 crude oil storage tanks, with a total storage capacity of more than 19 million barrels. The Patoka Terminal supplies crude oil to multiple Illinois refineries, as well as refineries across the Midwest and along the Gulf Coast. Collectively, the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors of the state’s oil and natural gas industry generated $22 billion in Gross Regional Product in 2020 — 3 percent of the overall state economy — and 16,700-plus jobs with an average salary of $104,000 a year, according to the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO) 2021 State of Energy Report.