CHICAGO (May 1, 2025) – As new tariffs threaten to drive up costs, Illinois’ punishing tax climate is already leaving many residents anxious about their pocketbooks.

The Illinois Policy Institute’s newest Lincoln Poll found 54% of Illinois voters identified high taxes as the No. 1 issue facing the state, an increase of 2 percentage points from January.

The economy climbed to second place, ranked as a top issue by 33% of the voters. It was tied for the No. 3 issue in the January Lincoln Poll. Housing affordability ranked as the top issue for nearly 1 and 5 Illinois voters.

These increases are a departure from previous polling, where crime and immigration held higher spots.

“We’re seeing voters shift to caring more about their cost of living in this round of polling,” said Patrick Andriesen, a writer at the Illinois Policy Institute. “Where social concerns had dominated attention, now Illinoisans are increasingly worried about making ends meet. Lawmakers must stop pursuing tax hike proposals and focus on keeping residents in the state.”

The poll showed 49.5% of voters said they would move out of Illinois if given the opportunity, a slight increase from January. Only 40% said they would rather stay in Illinois. The remaining 10.5% said they were unsure.

“This should be a wake-up call for Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois General Assembly to stop chasing national headlines and address the real cost-of-living crisis residents are facing. Every Illinois resident deserves the opportunity to make a living for themselves here, but the state’s high taxes and worsening economic outlook are driving existing and would-be residents away,” said Tom Demmer, a former state representative and fiscal policy adviser for the Illinois Policy Institute.   

Background on Illinois’ tax environment: 

• The average Illinois taxpayer shelled out about $4,030 in personal state income taxes for 2024. The amount per return has grown by $1,589 from 2017 to 2024.
• When including other state and local taxes, including property taxes and sales taxes, the average Illinois household pays $13,099 per year in taxes, or about 16.5% of a family’s income – the highest rate in the nation.
• Illinois has the second-highest property and gas taxes, plus the third-highest corporate income tax rates in the country. Sales taxes are seventh highest.

The poll was conducted for the Illinois Policy Institute by M3 Strategies, which surveyed 550 likely voters in Illinois between April 10-13 with a 4.18% margin of error.

More poll results are available here.

To read more about Illinoisans’ top concerns, visit illin.is/tax2move.

For interviews or interviews, contact media@illinoispolicy.org or (312) 607-4977.