Tax concern should be a warning to Chicago’s mayor

Almost half of those in a new poll named taxes one of the city top-two issues. Concern about the economy is on the rise.

As Chicago’s mayor and Springfield float more ways to take residents’ money, almost half of city residents in a new poll cite taxes as a top concern.

Among seven options, 46.2% of likely Chicago voters in a survey late last month cited taxes among the one or two most pressing issues facing city residents.

That’s up from 35% in October and comes as Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson wants to bring back a head tax on city employees and as a surcharge on millionaires is on the table in the General Assembly.

Black and Hispanic residents are particularly concerned about taxes, with 59% of Hispanic respondents and just over 47% of Black respondents naming it one of the city’s one or two biggest issues.

Crime remained in second place, cited by one-third of respondents. That’s down significantly from 48.4% a year ago and 58.4% two years ago.

The economy continued the climb it began last year, with 28% naming it a top-two issue. That’s up sharply from just over 10% a year ago.

The economy is a major concern for younger city residents, cited by just over 40% of those 18 to 30. In that group, the top three issues involved affordability — taxes, the economy and housing.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker himself said in his recent budget address that Illinoisans “are still paying too much for groceries, too much for housing, too much for electricity, too much to live. Everything is just too damned expensive.”

Chicagoans clearly feel pinched. Johnson would do well to focus on making the city more affordable before continuing his push to raises taxes.

The poll of likely Chicago voters, conducted Feb. 25-26, drew 437 respondents and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.69 percentage points. M3 Strategies conducted the poll for the Illinois Policy Institute.