Six Springfield Republicans May Sell Out Party To Pad Their Future Pensions

CHICAGO–Six Springfield Republicans are the lynchpin in the fight to defeat the Democrats’ proposed increase in the state personal and corporate income taxes and are reportedly leaning toward selling out their party’s position by voting for a “smaller” increase of “only” 33% or 42%, instead of 75%, according to Jim Tobin, President of National Taxpayers United of Illinois (NTUI). “Most of the income tax increases would go toward padding the pensions of retired government employees and legislators such as themselves,” said Tobin.

“The six republican turncoats are St. Sen. Larry K. Bomke (R-50, Springfield), St. Sen. Dale E. Risinger (R-37, Peoria), St. Rep. Bob Biggins (R-41, Elmhurst), St. Rep. Dave Winters (R-68, Rockford), St. Rep. Ronald A. Wait (R-69, Belvidere), and St. Rep. Roger L. Eddy (R-109, Hutsonville). Roger Eddy is pulling down a generous salary of $95,612 as Superintendent of Hutsonville CUSD 1, and his wife, Rebecca Eddy, a Hutsonville public school teacher, gets $42,382. If you include Roger Eddy’s salary as legislator, this double-dipping couple pulls in over $200,000 a year in taxpayer dollars. When the Eddys retire, they will have lavish, gold-plated double-dipping pensions.”

“Springfield politicians who support raising the state income tax and the $1 per pack cigarette tax do so not to benefit their constituents, but to line their own pockets when they retire,” said Tobin. “Increases in the state income taxes would be catastrophic for the Illinois economy. The proposed hike in the state corporate income tax to 10.9% would make it the highest corporate tax rate in the Western World. Raising the state personal income tax, whether by 75%, 42% or 33%, along with the corporate income tax hike, would kill Illinois’ economy and drive industry and jobs to states with lower or no state income taxes.”

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