Sen. Craig Wilcox
Sen. Craig Wilcox
State Sen. Craig Wilcox (R-McHenry) thinks voters need to think long and hard about what kind of state they want going forward.
“What’s happening now with coronavirus crisis will impact every level of government,” Wilcox told the Lake County Gazette. “Illinois was not well-positioned even before any of this and now things will get even worse. The average resident is in dire straits and Gov. (J.B) Pritzker is still planning to ask in November if they’d like to pay more taxes.”
By then, the economy could be even more ravaged as evidenced by a recent U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Metlife survey that concluded during the next two weeks, well over half of all small businesses across the country could be closed.
As it is, the report highlights that 24% of all small businesses have already temporarily locked their doors and another 40% indicate it is likely they will do so over the next 14 days.
With stay-at-home orders now in effect in nearly 40 states, including Illinois, Wilcox said he is at a loss as to why Pritzker would still be pushing forward with all his tax increase proposals.
“He still wants to see these increases,” he said. “I’ve always said his progressive tax idea won’t raise the money he needs, but now the vote on it is even more critical because if it passes, you have to wonder how soon it will be before the Democratic majority will be raising the rates on more people and justifying it based on the impact of the coronavirus. Every voter needs to figure out if this is the kind of Illinois they now want.”
Across the country, more than 10 million people have filed for unemployment benefits during the last two weeks and counting, with the unemployment spiraling up to 4.4% from 3.5% in February. Overall, 43% of businesses think they have less than six months until a permanent shutdown is unavoidable, while 10% of owners said they have less than a month to survive.
“And I’m not sure the numbers won’t go even higher,” Wilcox added. “That’s the hole the economy will have to climb out of when this is all done.”
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