While Illinois settles for Pritzker’s temporary relief that mostly expires after the November election, its neighbor states are making long-term changes to help grow their economies.
Pritzker gas taxes add to $72 fill-up to get kids to sports
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said making filling stations advertise his temporary gas tax suspension or pay $500 a day in fines was not forced political speech. But an association of 500 small petroleum businesses is suing because they believe otherwise.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s name will be on 150,000 prepaid gas and transit cards she plans to raffle off to Chicagoans. She’s trying again after aldermen initially rejected the $12.5 million proposal as an election stunt.
Springfield lawmakers will be the fourth-highest paid legislators in the nation after giving themselves a $2,700 raise in the 2023 state budget. Lawmakers’ salaries have increased 8% since Gov. J.B. Pritzker took office.
A complex system of high taxes and restrictive licensing undermines the goals of marijuana legalization proponents – leaving $600 million in potential revenue uncollected while helping the illegal drug trade.
Drivers save 45 cents a gallon on gas by filling up at a station across the state line in Missouri, thanks to Illinois boosting gas taxes to No. 2 in the U.S. Gas station owners said Illinois drivers are filling up in other states.
The content of the signs isn’t quite as important as the message being delivered to Illinois’ gas station owners: “Push our campaign agenda, or we’ll treat you like a criminal and fine you $500 per day.”
In his latest re-election ad, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker touted his election-year tax relief as lowering prices for families. He failed to mention his plan expires shortly after the election and that he imposed thousands in new taxes as his term began.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and lawmakers passed modest tax relief that expires after the 2022 election. But 24 tax and fee hikes during Pritzker’s term will leave the average family $2,165 poorer thanks to higher taxes.
The 2023 budget forces grocers to display Gov. J.B Pritzker’s temporary suspension of the 1% grocery tax. Illinois is one of the few states to tax groceries.
The effective state and local tax burden in Illinois has risen from 11.2% in 2019 to 12.9% in 2022. It is now the nation’s seventh highest.
A new measure would require gas stations to post a sign reminding customers the automatic gas tax hike is delayed. Retailers without the sign would be fined $500 per day, but they are pushing back against what amounts to a political ad.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot will raffle gas and mass transit cards instead of cutting her new 3-cent gas tax. The shift follows aldermen questioning how much a gas tax cut would cost the city.