An Illinois coalition that advocates changing the state from a flat to a progressive income tax is highlighting public support for an amendment on the November ballot that would do just that.
July 15th is the deadline for filing this year’s income taxes. TheVote Yes for Fair Taxgroup is using this week to remind people of the upcoming Fair Tax amendment. This includes voters from Rockford, DeKalb, Peoria, Springfield, Chicago and Metro East.
Sam Tuttle is the committee director of the coalition. She said this change will help the community.
“Rich folks beginning to pay their share will raise about $3 billion a year mostly from millionaires and billionaires that can be invested in schools, health care, human services jobs,” she said.
This is 3% of Illinoisans. Tuttle said the other 97% will see a decrease or no change at all.
Donna Granath is an educator for Rockford Public Schools. She said she supports the amendment because it will help teachers like herself.
“For decades the state has underfunded our schools, failing to provide the funding necessary for me and my colleagues to do our job[s],” she said.
Granath said teachers have to use some of their own money to help buy student supplies.
Opponents of the amendment said the answer to the state’s fiscal woes is to control spending, not raise taxes.
- Yvonne Boose is a 2020 corps member for Report for America, an initiative of the GroundTruth Project. It's a national service program that places talented journalists in local newsrooms like WNIJ. You can learn more about Report for America at wnij.org
