Lake County Gazette

Rep. Chris Bos spoke up about the rising gas prices in Illinois.

Bos advocates for the passage of House Bill 5723, which would bring tax relief to Illinoisans.

"Illinois joined 10 other states last month with gas prices above $5.00/gallon including Arizona, California and Michigan. The General Assembly could provide more relief to Illinoisans this year through the enactment of House Bill 5723, a bill to end the practice of charging ever-higher sales taxes on motor fuel as the price goes up. Charging a percentage sales tax has meant a massive windfall for Illinois government at the expense of residents as gas prices have dramatically increased. HB 5723, was introduced this spring and has more than 40 bipartisan co-sponsors, myself included, and puts a stop to this windfall by freezing the sales tax on gas at 18 cents a gallon. Unfortunately, the bill was bottled up in the Democrat-controlled House Rules Committee and never received a vote. If the General Assembly returns for a Special Session this summer, you can bet we'll be demanding action on this legislation to provide more relief for families and small businesses," Bos said.

The average cost of a gallon of regular gas in Illinois is $5.148 as of July 11, according to AAA, up from $3.342 one year ago. The national average is $4.678, while in Lake County, gas prices average $5.286 per gallon.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker implemented annual gas tax increases in 2019, meaning that as inflation drives gas prices higher, Illinois charges a higher tax, according to Illinois Policy. At the same time, Pritzker doubled Illinois' gas tax, increasing it from 19 cents to 38 cents per gallon.

House Bill 5723 would bring Illinois' gas tax down to 18 cents per gallon. Rep. Mark Batinick filed the legislation in March, and many Republicans signed on as co-sponsors, including Reps. Chris Bos, Amy Grant, Chris Miller, Deanne Mazzochi, Keith Wheeler, Martin McLaughlin and Steve Reick.