Lake County Gazette

Chris Bos (R-Lake Zurich), incumbent candidate for state representative of Illinois' 51st District, recently gave his opinion on the issue of high taxes in the state.

He criticized Gov. JB Pritzker for failing to use COVID-19 relief funds to provide actual tax relief by replenishing the depleted Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund.

"I think it's been a disaster from all the public fraud to using funds for pet democratic projects," Bos told the Lake County Gazette. "We should have restocked our unemployment fund and paid down our massive pension debt."

Illinois' property tax rate is the second highest in the nation at 2.27%, behind only New Jersey; a June report by Rocket Mortgage said. The owner of a $194,500 home in Illinois will pay $4,942 annually in property taxes. Thirty states have property tax rates lower than 1%.

"I think [property taxes are] too high and the state is paying the price for that in terms of our dwindling population and why businesses decide not to come here," Bos told the Gazette. "On top of that, when kids finish school now, they're thinking about where they'll go, where home affordability is better and where you can get better value for your dollar."

Pritzker doubled Illinois' gas tax from 19 cents to 38 cents in 2019, a FOX 32 Chicago report said. He also instituted an annual gas tax increase. But Illinois Democrats passed legislation postponing this year's scheduled gas tax increase of 2.2 cents from July to January.

The gas tax increase delay was part of a bundle of tax rebates and delays in the record $46.5 billion FY 2023 budget, an Illinois Policy report said. The tax rebates and delays will save the average Illinois family $556. The 2.2 cents increase of the gas tax will take effect in January 2023 and will be followed by another increase in July 2023—likely of 3.8 cents per gallon—bringing Illinois' total gasoline tax up to 45.2 cents per gallon.

Bos thinks the move is just a "gimmick" that doesn't go far enough to help Illinois families. He would prefer more permanent tax relief reform.

"It's a scam, nothing more than an election year gimmick that's not even real relief," he said. "Next year, we'll still have the scheduled July increase, meaning we will have two increases overall. I voted in favor of it because any relief is good, but the majority of my constituents see it for what it is, which is an election year gimmick and not a permanent solution or relief."

A March report by WalletHub found that Illinois has the tenth-overall highest tax burden in the nation at 9.7%. The report weighed property taxes, income taxes, and sales and excise taxes.