Metro East Sun

Illinois state Sen. Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville) can see the handwriting on the wall.

“When you have patterns like we do with tax increases, you’re only going to see the outmigration of jobs, businesses and young people continue,” Plummer told the Metro East Sun. “And now we have this progressive tax proposal, which is a terrible idea and will have a major negative impact on families and businesses across the state.”

Plummer isn’t alone in sounding the alarm bell.

A recent Illinois Policy Institute analysis projects that if the bill becomes law it will cost the state the equivalent of all of the 45,000 jobs it gained in 2019. Overall, Illinois Policy Institute projects the loss to be around 56,366 jobs. On a per capital basis adjusted to take into account the number of employed residents residing in Plummer’s 54th Senate District, the area would lose in the neighborhood of 1,800 jobs. 

The 54th Senate District includes the communities located on the Illinois side of Greater St. Louis, including all or portions of Bond, Clinton, Effingham, Fayette, Madison, Marion, and St. Clair counties.

“Quite simply, the governor just isn’t responsible with taxpayer money,” Plummer added. “It’s no coincidence that his first state budget was the largest in state history and his second one was even larger.”

Later this year, voters will decide if the state constitution should be amended to allow lawmakers the authority to enact a progressive tax system to replace the current flat tax.

In the meantime, Plummer said he thinks he’s figured out why Democrats in Springfield push as hard as they do to for all their wasteful spending. 

“It’s because the governor and his allies are held hostage by all the special interest groups that live on government,” he said. “For them, the spigot can never stop. That’s why we have the highest tax burden in the country across the board. We’ve got to end this pattern of tax, tax, tax and of demanding more of people’s hard-earned money.”