A $1.12 billion budget gap spurs Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to circulate a menu of 26 tax hikes. Instead of making Chicago even more hostile to taxpayers, he should be looking at budget reforms and ways to stop spending so much.
As food costs soar, Mayor Brandon Johnson wants to keep hurting Chicago’s working families with a grocery tax. He faces a $1.12 billion deficit that a $73 million grocery tax won’t budge.
As Chicago faces a major deficit for fiscal year 2026, Mayor Brandon Johnson is considering resurrecting a failed idea that punishes job creation: the corporate head tax.
Chicago’s high commercial property taxes hurt both businesses and homeowners. The result is less business, fewer jobs and growing inequality across communities.
The Illinois Senate attempted to pass a “rescue package” for Chicago area mass transit that would punish suburban homeowners with a new real estate transfer tax. State leaders must instead focus on reforms to boost housing and economic growth.
Despite record revenues, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s 2026 budget hikes taxes by another $482 million. Illinoisans are paying 44% more than six years ago and getting higher tax burdens as thanks.
Illinois just ranked as having the highest property tax rate in the country. Property taxes in Illinois are an especially heavy burden without the tradeoff seen in states such as Texas or New Hampshire, where there are either no sales taxes or income taxes.
In another short-term revenue move, Illinois lawmakers July 1 turned to vape and other nicotine product tax hikes to allow ever-more spending. Taxes on vape products went from 15% to 45% of the wholesale cost.
While Illinois families face one of the nation’s highest unemployment rates, the nation’s highest property taxes and the highest state and local tax burden, state lawmakers just gave themselves another raise. They get $128,000 for 70 days of work.
Illinoisans paid the highest state and local taxes for wireless cell phone services in the nation in 2024 – $136 per family more than the average. An increase in Illinois’ telecommunication tax July 1 just made them even higher.
Illinois’ latest budget diverts millions in infrastructure funds to cover structural budget deficits despite substandard road conditions.
Illinois is adding a 25-cent fee to all bets and 50-cent fee to high-volume sportsbooks such as DraftKings and FanDuel starting July 1. Illinoisans lost $1.12 billion in 2024, with $700 million of that on parlays. The new fees will add even more to that total.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a $55.2 billion budget propped up by five new tax hikes starting July 1. Gas, phone bills, tobacco, sportsbooks and rentals such as VRBO will all come with higher taxes in Illinois.
Just in time for Independence Day travel, drivers will face Illinois’ latest gasoline tax hike. Gov. J.B. Pritzker has added 29 cents per gallon since 2019 – costing the average driver $143 more per year.