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Illinois Income Tax May Jump 50 Percent

Mar 13, 2009 1:44 pm US/Central
Gov. Pat Quinn Says Tax Hike Is Needed To Fight Deficit

CHICAGO (CBS) ―Gov. Pat Quinn confirmed Friday that he plans to raise taxes on some Illinois residents to combat deficits in a difficult state budget, and called for broader tax reform.

Quinn said Friday that he plans to hike taxes for families that make more than $56,000 a year.

But Quinn contends his income tax proposal would amount to a tax cut for millions of Illinoisans by increasing the personal exemption to let them shield more income from being taxed.

“It’s very important that we raise taxes in a fair way for the people of Illinois in order to pay for important core priorities – whether it be safety, health, education, transportation, and so on,” Quinn said at a news conference at the James R. Thompson Center Friday.

He did not say exactly how much taxes would go up, but the Chicago Tribune reported Friday that he was looking for a hike of 50 percent, from a rate of from 3 percent to 4.5 percent.

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