Taxpayers In Springfield Protest Pritzker’s New Middle Class Taxes

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Springfield–Jim Tobin, President of Taxpayers United of America (TUA), and other taxpayer activists staged a protest in the Illinois State Capitol Building on May 21. The protest was held in opposition to the nearly endless demands for newer and higher taxes proposed by Gov. Jay Robert “J. B.” Pritzker and other tax thieves. 

Tobin, who spoke to the crowd at the protest, had harsh words for the current Illinois Governor. “Pritzker promised not to increase taxes on the middle class,” said Tobin. “He lied! Pritzker’s $2.4 Billion gasoline tax increase is a tax increase on the middle class.”

Pritzker has promised many new regressive taxes that will largely hurt the poor and middle class. As reported by the Chicago Tribune, some of the new taxes could be placed on ride-sharing, cable streaming, alcohol purchases, plastic bag usage, parking garage fees, cigarettes, electric vehicles, car registration fees and gasoline. These taxes are all regressive in nature, as they take up a larger share of an individual’s income compared to other taxes.

Of all the regressive and anti-middle class taxes being pushed however, the taxes for “road improvement” is the worst scam that Pritzker is pushing. As exposed in a Taxpayer Education Foundation study, a large part of the gasoline taxes collected in Illinois are funneled into the bloated bureaucracy that is Chicago government transit. This money is being stolen from non-Chicago taxpayers to fund lavish government employee pensions and subsidize an obsolete, 19th Century transit system. 

“The corpulent con man Pritzker is no savior of the middle class,” said Tobin. “He is determined to pillage the Illinois middle class to enrich the Chicago government class. This is irresponsible and legalized theft on a statewide scale.”

“That is why these grassroots protests are so important, now more than ever. We need to show Illinois government that Illinois taxpayers will resist new tax increases every step of the way.” 

Say NO To A Graduated Income Tax Increase

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The economic and demographic future of Illinois is now in the hands of the Illinois State House, as (SJRCA1) was approved by the Illinois Senate.


The state is hemorrhaging residents and companies, and if this state income tax increase passes, and is approved by voters, the state will likely never recover. Illinois is circling the drain as we speak. 

Gov. Pritzker says that this will be a tax on the “rich,” and that the tax will ensure fairness. This is totally untrue; in fact, the very opposite is the case.


The Illinois Pension Crisis continues to cost taxpayers more every year, and the Illinois exodus has reached historic levels. As it has been shown in the state of New York, wealthy taxpayers will leave because of higher taxes. Passing Pritzker’s Income Tax Increase Amendment will increase the outflow of taxpayers, and consequently lower expected tax revenues. So who will pay when the money taken from taxpayers falls short? The middle class.

This is a middle class tax increase!


Rates for individuals under Gov. Pritzker’s plan would jump to nearly 8 percent for anyone earning more than $250,000 per year. For those with incomes of more than $1 million annually, the 7.95 percent rate would not be marginalized—it would be applied to every dollar, not just income of more than $1 million!


The proposed tax increase omits inflation indexing (resulting in “bracket creep”), creates a marriage penalty, and includes a recapture provision that subjects the entirety of a taxpayer’s income to the top marginal rate once they reach that bracket!


Should this graduated-rate income tax become law, rates may climb even higher, and more taxpayers could be subjected to higher rates.


The neighboring states of Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, and Missouri have all cut income taxes in recent years, while Illinois is headed in the opposite direction. This may be our last chance to save the state from economic collapse.
Taxpayers must call their representative and tell them to vote NO on a tax increase on the middle class.


Representatives should instead focus on reigning in lavish public spending, instead of chasing away their constituents and promote pro-growth reforms to help Illinois prosper. 

JAIL PRITZKER, FREE TAXPAYERS!

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Ill. Gov. Jay Robert  “J. B.” Pritzker, the corpulent con-man acting on behalf of Chicago’s Democrat political machine, could find himself sharing a jail cell with former Ill. Gov. Rod Blagojevich as a result of a federal criminal investigation into a dubious residential property tax appeal, according to WBEZ Chicago Public Radio.


It seems that Pritzker, his wife and his brother-in-law are under federal criminal investigation for a dubious residential property tax appeal. According to WBEZ, the probe, which has not been revealed publicly until now, began last October and remains active.


The billionaire Pritzker and his wife may face a serious legal threat arising from their controversial pursuit of a property tax break on a 126-year-old mansion they purchased next to their Gold Coast home.


According to the WBEZ report, a Cook County inspector general’s report found Pritzker directed workers to remove all toilets from the mansion in order to have it declared “uninhabitable,” which gave the Pritzkers a huge property tax break. The report also found that the governor’s brother-in-law, Thomas J. Muenster, made “false representations” on tax appeal documents. That amounted to a “scheme to defraud” taxpayers out of more than $331,000.


The Chicago Sun-Times published news of a confidential memo from Cook County Inspector General Patrick Blanchard. The report found the Pritzkers had caused the residence they had purchased next to their home to fall into disrepair, in part, by removing its toilets in October 2015 in order to lower the home’s property taxes by having it declared “vacant and uninhabitable.”


On that basis, the Pritzkers’ lawyers persuaded then-Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios’ office to lower the home’s market value from more than $6.25 million to slightly less than $1.08 million. That ultimately led to a dramatically lower property tax bill for the mansion.


“It’s ironic that Pritzker allegedly planned to defraud taxpayers out of more than $331,000 for his benefit while he is pushing to change the state income tax to a graduated income tax,” said Jim Tobin, president of Taxpayers United of Illinois (TUA). “Pritzker’s graduated income tax increase amendment would steal billions from the state’s most productive citizens to fund lavish, unnecessary government pensions.”


“This man has no conscience. The way things are going, he may end up in a residence provided by the state, and he won’t have to worry about property taxes.”