Illinois state Rep. Chris Miller (R-Oakland) | https://repcmiller.com/
Illinois state Rep. Chris Miller (R-Oakland) | https://repcmiller.com/
A Downstate Illinois lawmaker is fuming over what he considers to be self-inflicted wounds on state government as a result of its own tragically flawed policies.
“I haven’t talked to anyone that wants to leave Illinois, but many of them feel like they are being forced out by bad policy and never-ending taxes,” state Rep. Chris Miller (R-Oakland) told the East Central Reporter. “Anytime you raise taxes, you hurt middle-class families and businesses. And the more difficult you make it for people to live, the quicker the exodus will be.”
Miller argues that the progressive income tax proposal being championed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker stands to have that very effect by targeting those who have already had enough. With taxes already listed as the top reason why most Illinoisans say they want out, Pritzker’s plan would add $3.4 billion to the burden of those earning $250,000 per year.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker
The new tax would come at a time when those earning upward of $200,000 are already bolting the state at nearly twice the rate of average and below-average earners. In addition, the state is losing more than twice as many wealthy residents as it is attracting, and over the last decade has lost at least $32 billion in income from those who have left the state in search of greener pastures.
“You have to know that successful people have options,” Miller said. “They don’t have to hang around and take all the abuse. Raising every tax you can think of simply exacerbates the problem of outmigration. We can grow out of it but the only way is if we make a system where people don’t just survive but want to thrive. Businesses exist to make money, not work for the government"
Miller says that not a day goes by that he does not see lawmakers in Springfield showing just how out of touch they are with the people they represent.
"When you have people in charge of government who haven’t worked a day in their life, that's what happens," he said. "That's why you saw things like 21 new taxes implemented at start of the year."
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