As if Illinois weren’t already steadily chasing businesses and citizens away with policies of economic destruction, Illinois lawmakers are poised to raise taxes by as much as 75%, effectively wiping out the benefits of Obama’s recent extension of the Bush tax cuts for citizens of his home state. What’s more, Chicago machine boss and Democrat House Speaker Michael Madigan is pushing a faux TABOR (Taxpayer Bill of Rights) to give his members and on-the-fence Republicans cover to pass this job-killing, prosperity-stifling plan. My colleague Kristina Rasmussen was lined up to testify against this bill at a hearing this past week but the only testimony allowed was by the Speaker himself. I suppose it was a hearing in a way — Illinois lawmakers heard marching orders from the powerful Speaker.
Despite myths perpetrated by special interest groups with vested interest in confiscating further revenue from hardworking Illinoisans, Illinois is already a very high-tax state. According to the Tax Foundation, the proposed hike would give Illinois the “highest state corporate income tax in the United States and the highest combined national-local corporate income tax in the industrialized world.”
Part of the plan involves raising taxes to borrow more money. Only in the halls of bloated government does this make sense. Of course, the projected revenue will never be realized because people react to changing circumstances by working less, hiring less, and, of course, moving their families and businesses to friendly environments. Then there’s the regressive tobacco tax proposal that will lead to decreased revenue and possibly even smuggling.
At the Illinois Policy Institute, we’ve put together the top 12 reasons to oppose this tax hike. We’ve also created a tax calculator for Illinois citizens to see the impact it will have on them, their families, and their businesses.
If you live in Illinois or know someone who does, here is the website for finding one’s legislator. They plan to be back in the office tomorrow afternoon to vote on this. They need to hear from constituents that even President Obama got the hint: a tax hike in a recession is poisonous public policy.
John M. O’Hara is author of A New American Tea Party, a book chronicling the history and principles of the tea party movement. He is vice president of external relations at the Illinois Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization dedicated to supporting free market principles and liberty-based public policy initiatives for a better Illinois.