The very first question on your November 3rd ballot will ask if you want to amend the Illinois Constitution. This amendment would end the State’s current flat tax and would instead roll into place a Progressive Tax.
WHY VOTE NO?
Since the 1970s, the Illinois Constitution has protected our State’s flat income tax. A flat tax ensures that all Illinoisans “equally” pay the same income tax rate. This means if the tax rate increases for one person it increases for all—this is fair.
The State’s Current Flat Tax Protects Taxpayers:
- Keeps ALL lawmakers accountable to ALL taxpayers when raising taxes because the flat tax affects every one of their constituents, in every district.
- Sets one tax rate that applies fairly to all.
- Provides tax rate stability and predictability for individuals, families, and businesses.
If we don’t defeat the Progressive Tax, the Flat Tax protections are removed:
- Income tax hikes can be designed to only affect specific groups of people.
- Every legislative session, a new group of people could see their taxes increase.
- Lawmakers can support these tax hikes WITHOUT full accountability from ALL their constituents.
Accountability
Under a progressive income tax, lawmakers will be able to pick and choose whose taxes they raise. While the legislature has always had the ability to set the income tax rate, this Constitutional Amendment would provide them additional political cover. No longer will lawmakers have to worry about statewide opposition to their tax votes from all voters. Instead, legislators can hike up the tax rate on only a limited group of Illinoisans, thereby limiting voter backlash. If only a few people see their taxes going up at a time, it will be nearly impossible to make their opposition heard.
Future Tax Hikes
This new progressive tax structure will not fix our State’s financial problems. The progressive tax initially would shift the taxing burden on the highest earners in the State but raising taxes on the highest earners may – in the long run – only lead to higher taxes for all of us. The revenue estimates from the proposed progressive tax structure will not meet Springfield’s projected spending in the years to come. Which means, the middle class income will be next on the chopping block for a tax increase.
Myth v Reality
BALLOT INFORMATION
WHAT DOES IFB POLICY SAY ABOUT
THE PROGRESSIVE INCOME TAX?
LEARN MORE
See highlights from the kick-off event that took place at Reichert Farm on July 7, 2020.
Should the Constitutional Amendment pass, the progressive income tax structure that would
take effect on January 1, 2021, would be as follows:
Note: For Single Filers earning over $750,000 and for Joint Filers earning over $1,000,000, the 7.99% is a flat rate applied to the entire income. For all other filers, each tax rate applies only to earnings that fall between the associated bracket range.
SHOW YOUR SUPPORT
We challenge YOU! Make a phone a tree:
Call your family, friends, and neighbors that you think will support us and make sure they:
1) Answer the question on the ballot; and
2) VOTE NO!
Get your “Vote NO on the Progressive Tax” yard sign!
Contact your County Farm Bureau Office to get your sign.
VOTER INFORMATION
Here’s what county clerks want you to know about the Nov. 3 general election. Thanks to Schuyler County Clerk Mindy Garrett for sharing her expertise.
- Check your mailbox for vote-by-mail applications. Local election authorities are mailing applications to everyone who voted in the past three elections as directed in legislation passed by the General
- Only complete and return if you chose to vote by mail. Applications will include instructions for a four-step process to complete and return the information. “If you fill it out, you’ll get a ballot (in the mail),” Garrett said. If you change your mind after you’ve received a ballot, you’ll have to take it with you to the polls.
- Be patient. Voters may complete and return applications as soon as they receive them, but those ballots won’t come any earlier. In fact, Garrett was a little concerned some voters might momentarily forget they applied for a mail-in ballot if it arrives 45 days later. All election ballots will be mailed Sept. 24. “That’s the soonest we can mail them out,” she said.
- Expect reminders in the mail. Everyone who doesn’t complete and return an application to vote by mail will receive a reminder in the mail from Secretary of State Jesse White. The General Assembly’s legislation requires the secretary of state’s office to mail reminders Sept. 15 and Oct. 15 to anyone who doesn’t apply to vote by mail. There’s no option to mark it “not interested” and return it.
- Mail it by Nov. 3. State law requires mailed ballots to be postmarked on or before Election Day to be valid. Mailed ballots may arrive up to 14 days after Election Day (Nov. 17) and be counted. “If you vote by mail, it has to be postmarked on (or before) Nov. 3. We can’t accept it if it’s postmarked Nov. 4,” Garrett said.
Check your local election authority’s website or Illinois Board of Elections’ website for the latest election information.
