SPRINGFIELD – Governor Rauner's comments Wednesday indicating his willingness to compromise on a "grand bargain" to achieve the state's first budget in 18 months is causing one of the governor's long-standing, most loyal supporters to pause.
Illinois Policy Institute's CEO John Tillman responded to the governor's third budget address saying the proposed budget doesn't touch the state's foundational budget weaknesses. Tax hikes don't work without major policy adjustments.
"Springfield doesn't deserve another penny from Illinois families," Tillman said. “Gov. Rauner is right that Illinois needs structural reforms to become attractive to job creators and residents. The so-called ‘grand bargain’ that has been talked about does not do this.
“The proposal that has been worked on by state Sens. John Cullerton and Christine Radogno would raise taxes without any meaningful pension reform, property tax relief, or promise to put Illinois on a better economic path going forward. It is unfair to all Illinois residents, but unfortunately the state’s most vulnerable will be hit the hardest.
“We know what happens when the state raises taxes without making structural reforms. In 2011, former Gov. Pat Quinn raised taxes without reforming spending. Every household paid thousands of dollars in higher taxes, and the state collected $31 billion in additional revenue. Where did that $31 billion go? It didn’t go toward repairing our economy or erasing the backlog of unpaid bills. It did nothing to fund programs for the poor. Most of that money went to highly paid government workers."
And what happened to the state during and after that tax increase? Tillman asked.
- Bloomington, Carbondale, Peoria and the Quad Cities are already in recession, and four more Illinois metro areas are on the brink of economic collapse, according to Moody’s Investors Service.
- Illinois lost a net 300,000 people to other states from 2011 to 2014 due to out-migration, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. During the four years of the full income-tax hike Illinois lost $14 billion in annual adjusted gross income, or AGI, to other states, on net. The out-migration of income cost Illinois $2.7 billion in 2011, $3.9 billion in 2012, $4.2 billion in 2013 and $3.4 billion in 2014. That compares with an average annual loss of $2.2 billion of AGI per year over the 16 years prior to the tax hike.
- Nearly 20 percent of Illinois homes are deeply underwater on their mortgages, the second-worst in the U.S., according to realtytrac.com.
“Illinois can’t weather another tax increase. And the state legislature’s insistence on doing nothing and standing in the way of reform make it clearer than ever before that Springfield doesn’t deserve another penny from Illinois families.
“Illinois does not have a tax problem; it has a spending problem.
Tillman pointed to a budget the Illinois Policy Institute proposed recently, which, Tillman said, has outlined precisely how the General Assembly can balance the state budget without tax increases, and how the state can enact pension reform that complies with the Illinois Constitution as it is written.
"In our 52-page proposal, ‘Budget Solutions 2018,’ we show what real reform looks like. And our proposal is based on measures that all have been backed legislatively," he said.
“We’ve shown that not only is it possible, but it is also economically necessary. Illinois has reached a point of no return. A balanced budget with spending reform is the bare minimum that our legislators must do if there is to be any hope of turning around our state. It’s also the moral thing to do. It’s not right to ask Illinois families to send thousands of dollars to Springfield while politicians continue the same antics.
“Many Springfield insiders have called our budget plan impossible – that’s because they are used to only doing what is politically possible. Any so-called ‘solution’ crafted for the 177 politicians in Springfield is not good enough. Illinois must pass a budget that was made for the 12 million Illinoisans.”
Republicans that run for reelection on tax increases are as dumb as they come. They’re called ‘moderate’ Republicans.
Bloomington, Carbondale, Peoria, and the Quad Cities are in recession, but Rockford isn’t? Lol. BS. Somebody number fixed. This whole state, NOT the state of Chicago btw, is in recession.
Rauner can easily win reelection by RUNNING AGAINST the tax increases without reforms. Don’t sign the budget. His voters are actually unaffected.
As I warned everyone in the 2014 primary, Rahm’s fly fishing buddy is going to sell us out with big tax increases just as he sold out social conservatives on SB1564 and with his gay Human Rights Commission appointees—never mind his lack of support for Trump. My guess is that he is not running in 2018 because the whole game was to make the rest of the state bail out Chicago with a “bipartisan” tax increase just like we have gotten in the past. The uniparty combine is striking again. Sorry, Senator McConchie, I am glad I worked to get you elected but the Governor is playing with fire not denouncing the Radagno plan. It’s long on tax increases and short term spending gimmicks as Jeanne Ives has pointed out.
With all due respect to the readers here most people I know in Illinois have no idea what their taxes are. They make their monthly house payments without even looking at how little goes to their principle balance. Sometimes I wonder about the mentality of most of Illinois citizens.
(no offence intended…but it’s as I see it)
I agree with Joe’s first comment. All state legislators, who support increasing tax rates, should lose their next elections. The Republicans, who want to increase tax rates, should lose their next primaries.
Where is that so-called Tea Party Leader from Podunk, Downstate, Illinois, who was on the pages of the Illinois Review, days before the election, admonishing conservatives to “put on your Big-Boy pants and vote for Rauner.”
Haven’t heard from him lately, have we?
If you are financially independent – as I am now – the thing to do is just flee Illinois. There are places with lower costs of living, lower taxes and better weather.
Parents, with children, who feel tied down – think outside the box. Your children will be better off when you move, given the disgusting state of public education around here.