The tax hike: Permanent or temporary?
It's time for honest answers about Illinois' record income tax hike.
Last January, Gov. Quinn, President Cullerton and Speaker Madigan pushed through a record income tax increase on the grounds that it was “temporary.” They then proceeded to budget and spend in such a way that would make the tax hike’s partial roll back in 2015 impossible. A classic bait and switch if ever there was one.
When pressed by Fox Chicago last week about the “temporary” nature of the tax hike, Speaker Madigan said he’d deal with the question of making it permanent or not in 2015.
But the time for deciding that isn’t in 2015. It’s now. How we spend today matters for balancing our budget tomorrow. Coyness only benefits those who would perpetuate a crisis in order to extract even more revenue from Illinois families and business.
As we embark on the 2012 legislative session, Illinois residents deserve clear answers to the following two questions from Messers Quinn, Cullerton and Madigan:
- Given the damaging impact of the tax hike on both individuals and corporations, do you support an immediate repeal of the tax hike?
- If you oppose an immediate repeal, do you still vow to allow the tax hikes to sunset as you originally promised?
Taxpayers await their reply.