(The Center Square) – GOP lawmakers say a proposal to raise taxes on the wealthiest people and corporations in Illinois will be detrimental to small businesses.
Two joint resolutions to raise over $6 billion in new revenue have been filed by Illinois Democrats with support from a group called the Illinois Revenue Alliance. Members include the Chicago Teachers Union, which just scored a new contract from Chicago Public Schools worth $1.5 billion, the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, and the Workers Center for Racial Justice.
A briefing from the Alliance contends that the state’s existing tax system is unfair to low-income residents and the new taxes will support immigrant communities, healthcare access for all, and provide direct cash assistance.
“People from other countries can come to Illinois and get gold plated healthcare while Illinoisans have to decide if they want to go to the dentist or the eye doctor because they can’t make ends meet,” said state Sen. Jason Plummer, R-Edwardsville, during a news conference Thursday.
Among the new taxes being proposed include $1.7 billion excise tax on capital gains, an $840 million billionaire wealth tax, and $830 million to raise the corporate income tax in Illinois. At 9.5%, Illinois already has the third-highest corporate income tax rate in the country.
“They claim the plan targets the wealthy, but in reality, it just hits small businesses the hardest,” said Plummer. “Those small businesses create the most jobs in Illinois. These aren’t billion dollar corporations with endless resources, these are family-owned shops, start-ups, farms and small manufacturers from the Wisconsin border to Kentucky border.”
Plummer added that the proposal sends a clear message to businesses in Illinois what the reality is going to be for them if they try to do business in this unfriendly state.
A request for comment from the legislation’s sponsor, state Rep. Will Davis, D-Hazel Crest, and a member of the Illinois Revenue Alliance was not answered.
