Metro East Sun

State Sen. Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville) believes his Democrat colleagues have used bait and switch tactics in the form of tax relief to shift focus away from who's to blame for high taxes to begin with. 

Plummer took to Facebook earlier this month to share his thoughts with his constituents. 

"You see what they do - raise taxes on you for years and then, like magic, right before the election they appear like Santa Clause to provide you 'relief' with a temporary gimmick," Plummer wrote in the April 4 post. "In this instance, you'll get a check and 'relief' right before the election. And immediately after the election, the 'relief' disappears, and they are back to treating the working men and women of Illinois like ATMs to fund their bloated government and pet projects."

Senate President Don Harmon, a Democrat, filed the original legislation known as Senate Bill 1150 in February of last year. It was placed on the Senate Calendar for a third reading on March 31, 2022. The bill included an amendment to the tax relief plan.

According to KWQC, the plan called for suspending the state's grocery tax and would provide a one-time tax refund to 97% of Illinois taxpayers. Single filers would receive $100 while couples would receive $200 with $50 for up to three dependents. Single filers making less than $250,000 and joint filers making under $500,000 would qualify for the refunds set to be delivered by late summer or early fall.

Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie called the relief plan an election year stunt, WTTW reported. McConchie added the one-time relief payment would come right before the election instead of "real" tax reform.