Name: Speaker Emanuel ‘Chris’ Welch wants a graduated income tax do-over — this time tied to pension funding
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Speaker Emanuel ‘Chris’ Welch wants a graduated income tax do-over — this time tied to pension funding

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AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneFeb 25, 2021 at 10:57 pmNew Democratic House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch suggested Wednesday that the state should again ask voters to approve a graduated-rate income tax, but this time target the new money toward paying down Illinois’ massive pension debt.The call for a do-over came after voters in November Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s graduated income tax proposal. Opponents, including Republicans and business leaders, used distrust of Springfield to argue for keeping the state constitution’s flat tax requirement.Advertisement“We have to tell the voters what we’re going to do with that money,” Welch said during a virtual event hosted by the Economic Club of Chicago. “I certainly think tying that new revenue to pensions would be a winner.”Whether there will be an appetite among other Democrats for another attempt at passing a graduated tax remains unclear. Pritzker did not immediately join Welch’s push.Advertisement“The governor believes the fair tax was the best option for addressing the state’s long-term structural challenges, but for this year he looks forward to working with the General Assembly to pass a balanced budget that lifts up working families who have suffered amid this pandemic and that continues to rebuild our economy,” Pritzker spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh said in a statement.A spokesman for Democratic Senate President Don Harmon of Oak Park had no comment.Welch pointed to the November success of an Arizona ballot measure that increases taxes on high earners to help fund education as an example for Illinois. “That’s a proven model that works,” he said.Earmarking increased taxes to pay for government worker retirement benefits could prove a tough sell to voters, however.Illinois currently faces $141 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, and Pritzker’s spending plan for the budget year that begins July 1 calls for devoting nearly $9.4 billion to making the state’s required annual contribution. That’s more than 20% of the $41.6 billion the governor proposes spending to cover day-to-day state operations.If voters had approved the fall ballot question, Illinois would have seen an estimated $3.6 billion a year in additional tax money. Pritzker had called for dedicating $200 million of that money each year to increasing the state’s pension contribution, but there was no guarantee on how any of the money would be spent.That allowed opponents to characterize the proposal as a “blank check” for leaders in Springfield, most notably Welch’s predecessor, longtime House Speaker Michael Madigan, who has been implicated but not charged in an ongoing federal corruption investigation. Madigan, who stepped down from the House last week, has denied any wrongdoing.In a shot at Madigan last November, Pritzker of his graduated income tax plan on voters’ concerns about corruption and their lack of trust in government.AdvertisementOn Wednesday, Welch, a Madigan ally, said another way for lawmakers to convince voters to support changing the tax system is to approve changes to the state’s government ethics laws to improve trust in public officials. That includes looking at changes such as making economic interest disclosures more transparent and barring legislators from working as lobbyists at other levels of government, he said.“In evidence by the failure of the progressive tax, folks don’t trust us,” Welch said. “If we can rebuild that trust, it’ll be amazing what voters will help us do.”Adopting a graduated tax structure that allows the state to tax higher incomes at higher rates would help balance the budget without harming the most vulnerable residents and bring Illinois in line with most other states that have an income tax, Welch said.Pritzker, a billionaire who made the graduated tax a cornerstone of his governor campaign and plans to stabilize state finances, gave $58 million for the referendum effort. Opponents were led by billionaire hedge fund founder Ken Griffin, and both sides raised more than $124 million for ads for and against the measure.The next opportunity to put the question to voters would be in the November 2022 election, when Pritzker is expected to be on the ballot seeking a second term. That’s also a nonpresidential year, and some supporters of the graduated tax thought it was a bad move to put the question on the ballot in a presidential year when turnout is higher.Approving a constitutional amendment requires support from either 60% of those voting on the question or a majority of those who cast a ballot in the election. The latter would be an easier threshold to meet in lower-turnout midterm election years, when governor and other statewide offices are on the ballot in Illinois.AdvertisementPlacing a constitutional amendment referendum on the ballot requires a three-fifths majority in each chamber of the General Assembly, and the governor plays no formal role.Editor’s note: This story was updated to reflect the correct amount of money spent on the graduated income tax referendum campaign. Advertisement

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneFeb 25, 2021 at 10:57 pmNew Democratic House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch suggested Wednesday that the state should again ask voters to approve a graduated-rate income tax, but this time target the new money toward paying down Illinois’ massive pension debt.The call for a do-over came after voters in November Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s graduated income tax proposal. Opponents, including Republicans and business leaders, used distrust of Springfield to argue for keeping the state constitution’s flat tax requirement.Advertisement“We have to tell the voters...

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The Chicago Tribune is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television are named), it remains the most-read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region. It had the 6th highest circulation for American newspapers in 2017.

Speaker Emanuel ‘Chris’ Welch wants a graduated income tax do-over — this time tied to pension funding

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