Dupage Policy Journal

State Rep. Amy Grant (R-Wheaton) has signed on to co-sponsor legislation aimed at wiping Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s graduated income tax legislation from the November ballot.

“It’s the last thing we should be doing to our businesses right now,” Grant told the DuPage Policy Journal of the proposal Pritzker has been pushing since his days of being on the campaign trail.

Along partisan lines, lawmakers in 2019 authorized having the question on the November ballot of if the state should change to a graduated tax structure from its current flat tax system.

Though the governor continues to insist the tax would only mean higher rates for the state’s most affluent residents, Grant argues that some small businesses could see tax hikes of as high as 47%.

Corporate incomes taxes in Illinois already rank as the second highest in the country and passage of the graduated tax would make Illinois home to the highest income taxes in the country.

“Businesses that were forced to close due to executive orders issued by Gov. Pritzker are either holding on by a thread or have already made the difficult decision to close their doors permanently,” Grant said. “I don’t know how any lawmaker could in good conscience even consider subjecting them to a tax hike at this time.”

Grant said the state can ill-afford placing more of the burden on the shoulders of taxpayers.   

“Now is the time for fiscal responsibility and for cutting the waste out of the budget,” Grant said. “We simply cannot squeeze more money out of small business owners who right now are at risk of losing everything. We need to adopt policies that assist with Illinois’ economic recovery, not those that would cause more of our job creators to close their doors.”

Since being filed in late May, House Joint Resolution 123 has already attracted 43 sponsors.