Will County Gazette

Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris) supported legislation that provides temporary relief from inflation but said that the main problem and focus should have been using American Rescue Plan funds to reduce the unemployment insurance trust fund deficit. 

"But because of covid, this is not a typical year," Rezin said during a Senate meeting. "Instead of having a surplus, we had a huge deficit like every other state across the country that was closed for a significant amount of time. But the difference is 32 states in the country used their ARPA dollars, used their CARES dollars, those are those federal dollars designated [as a] one-time payment to your state to replenish this fund."

Rezin's comments came before the State Senate unanimously approved the inflation relief bill that was signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker on April 19.

"We're just kicking the can down the road," Rezin said. "Nothing is going to change. We're just moving the speed bump from the summer to after the election. That's what's happening here. Let's be honest here."

The legislation, Senate Bill 157, passed unanimously in both the Senate and House on April 9, the Illinois General Assembly reported.

Under the law, several tax incentives were created to provide temporary relief for Illinois taxpayers who, like most Americans, are feeling the pinch associated with the high cost of inflation, the Illinois General Assembly reported. However, the incentives aren't permanent and will expire after the November election.

The bill also established the Manufacturing Illinois Chips for Real Opportunity (MICRO) Act, a big selling point for Republicans, the Illinois General Assembly reported. MICRO created tax incentives for companies that manufacture semiconductors, microchips, and component parts.