Will County Gazette

Rick Laib hopes Illinois voters feel as outraged as he does by the latest Democratic potential proposal in Springfield about the state’s tax front.

“This should be insulting to voters,” the former 11th District Republican Congressional candidate told the Will County Gazette after House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch (D-Hillside) recently admitted that the party is considering a renewed push for its progressive income tax legislation. “Illinois legislators are so committed to spending and overspending that they would now propose, for a second time in two years, a financial plan that would eventually put Illinois in a worse financial state than it already is in.”

Welch recently stressed that the windfall would be used to pay down the state’s $141 billion liability in unfunded pensions.

No matter how they try to rationalize, Laib said voters need to show the same level of defiance they did in November when a similar measure fell far short of securing the 60% support needed for passage, despite Gov. J.B. Pritzker pouring millions of dollars into a campaign aimed at turning the measure into law.

“Voters are wise to not put their faith in any legislator that again advances a fair tax because it is a measure that would not out us on the road to fiscal health and because Illinois voters just rejected this proposal,” he added. “Their focus should be on lowering taxes and reducing regulations and not focusing on plans that would perpetuate more brokenness for Illinoisians.”

In November, the progressive tax proposal garnered just over 47% of the vote, even failing to meet the 60% threshold need for passage in several Democratic strongholds.

Illinois now spends almost a quarter of every tax dollar on its state pension plans.