EFFINGHAM — Effingham County Board Chair Jim Niemann said Illinois’ dire financial situation cannot be solved by implementing a graduated income tax.
There are other options, Niemann said.
It doesn’t appear the Democrat-dominated Illinois House is looking too far beyond the tax amendment. On Tuesday, it voted 61-52 in favor of HR 1025, which would alter the state’s tax system from a flat tax to a progressive tax. A flat tax calls for all economic classes to pay the same 4.95 percent rate, while a progressive tax calls for higher rates for upper-income levels.
“I am opposed,” Niemann said. “Illinois cannot tax its way out of the financial mess it is in.”
Billionaire J.B. Pritzker, a Democratic candidate for governor, has been pushing for a progressive tax. Ultimately, a constitutional amendment will be needed to amend the flat tax, and a vote cannot be staged until at least 2020.
“I would, of course, want the voters to have the ability to have as much control as they could,” said Niemann, who scoffs at the notion individuals making $17,300 should face higher taxes. “That is just silliness. [Making] $17,300 is barely getting by in society today, and that’s with government assistance or substantial financial reserves.”
Niemann insisted there are alternatives ways of creating extra funding without enacting a progressive tax amendment.
“There are other sources,” he said.
Niemann mentioned that the state could generate additional income by implementing an entry toll for out-of-state travelers. The naming rights of a series of “state assets,” such as buildings and highways, could be sold. Additionally, retail and service businesses could be expanded with 50-year tax-free industrial zones.
“More economic activity creates more tax revenue,” Niemann said. “It is a self-feeding cycle of success or failure depending on state tax regulations. The progressive tax is on the failure side of the equation.”
Alerts Sign-up