Lake County Gazette

Illinois State Rep. Martin McLaughlin (R) attacked Gov. J.B. Pritzker's (D) administration following reports of state residents struggling to obtain certain tax forms for the third year in a row.

"Dysfunction at state agencies under the Pritzker administration has caused Illinois residents unnecessary hardship," McLaughlin wrote in a Facebook post published recently. "We can give Illinoisans an efficient, transparent state government that works for them by actually addressing the issues at our state agencies rather than making excuses."

Attached to the post was a CBS Chicago article  regarding the 1099-G tax form, which is typically used by those who have filed for unemployment benefits. For the third year in a row, CBS Chicago has been approached by state residents who have reported having issues getting the form from the government.

Unemployment claimants are unable to file their taxes without the 1099-G form, and some who've had repeated struggles blame the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES).

According to CBS Chicago, toward the end of January, approximately 2,500 calls were made to Illinois' unemployment office each day. Approximately 88 call-takers were active, with 75 of them handling help calls. During the same time in 2022, there were approximately 7,179 calls per day, 241 call-takers and approximately 10,000 backlogged calls for 1099 issues.

IDES has not yet responded to a request for comment.