Republicans Hang Tough on Taxes in Illinois

SB44, the cigarette tax hike, cleared another hurdle yesterday as it passed out of its House Committee on a party line vote 3-2.  Like the lobbyist for the Lung Association says, this is a politically easy tax vote for Republicans as much as it is for Democrats.  Yet, the GOP hung tough on the easy tax vote.

If this is any indicator of what future tax hike votes will be like, it will be good news for the Republicans.  An income tax increase is far less popular and a far tougher vote.  If you can’t get them on the easy vote what makes you believe they’ll go for the tough one.  By standing tall, they hold the party in power for the last six years accountable for the state’s dire financial situation.  That’s good policy and good politics.

By the way, if there was ever a clearer example of the folly of tobacco tax increase it was this line in the Pantagraph’s coverage:

“At Wednesday’s hearing, supporters said the tax increase would deter people from smoking in addition to bringing in more tax money.”

Think about that for a moment.  

With this kind of logic prevailing in Springfield, it’s no wonder the state is in such dire straits.

 

 

Illinois Legislators Confront Reality and It Hurts

This week budget analysts at the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability discovered a small bomb in the state budget that is creating howls from state legislators.  

Currently, state employees pay about $90 per month per individual for cadillac health care coverage under the state employee health insurance program.  The taxpayer picks up the tag.  Compare that to my bare bones Health Savings Account where I pay $150 per month for a $2,500+ deductible.  

It seems premium increases — well actually — shifting costs to those actually receiving the services means state employees could pay up to 4,000 percent more according to the State Journal-Register.

This has legislators who participate in the program squealing:

Lawmakers, who also would pay more for their coverage, say the increase seems too high. 

Sen. Dave Syverson, a Rockford Republican who serves on COGFA, said lawmakers need more answers about why such a large increase is needed now, but he also sees the need for employees to pay more.

“In the private sector, employee costs are going up a whole lot faster than this. It’s kind of hard for people in government to say, ‘Don’t raise my rates, but raise the rates on the taxpayers who are paying my salary instead,’” Syverson said.

Rep. Raymond Poe, a fellow COGFA member, said he’s on the QCHP plan and acknowledges that $90 a month might be cheap. 

“But to fix that, you raise the price gradually. You don’t jump it like this,” he said.

Poe said he expects the Quinn administration “absolutely” will have to negotiate the increases with the unions. He thinks the administration is pushing to get more employees in the cost-cutting HMO plan.

Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, an Evanston Democrat who co-chairs COGFA, said such a large increase could put an “incredible financial strain on the very people QCHP is supposed to be helping.”

“Invariably, there’s going to need to be some consensus built around the economic realities we’re all facing,” Schoenberg said about Quinn needing to discuss the increases with the unions.

How much do you want to bet that the consensus economic reality in Springfield will be that the taxpayer continues to pay not only for their health care, the health care for families making $65,000 per year, and lawmakers health care?

Economic reality in Illinois is all about supply and demand.  Taxpayers supply money that the political class demands.

Outsourcing Illinois State Law to California? HB422 May Do Just That

If there is a state that is more unfriendly to business, in more dire economic circumstances than Illinois, and has a bigger fiscal mess then it is California.  The state has been bleeding jobs for decades.  All that population growth in states such as Arizona, Nevada and Montana came from those fleeing California.

One would think that taxing, regulating and generally creating a hostile economic environment wouldn’t be the example to follow. But some in the General Assembly apparently like to see people suffer.  That’s why a group of state lawmakers want to, essentially, turn over regulating auto emissions to California lawmakers.

HB422, The Illinois Clean Car Act, ”Requires the Illinois Pollution Control Board to adopt amendments necessary to ensure that the Illinois Clean Vehicle Program is kept identical in substance with the California Low Emission Vehicle Program.”

Auto makers — you know the guys who need us to bail them out — auto dealers, farmers and many in the business community oppose the legislation and so far that’s been enough to keep the enviro wolves at bay.  They have a number of good reasons why.  Probably the most salient points are that the technology isn’t yet feasible and that consumer choices will be limited. 

I mean do we want a Chicago dominated government giving unaccountable California legislators and bureaucrats the power to tell farmers in Central and Southern Illinois what kind of vehicles they can drive?  At a certain point we have to admit the Toyota Prius just isn’t very useful down on the farm.   Although it is unlikely that common sense will rule the day among this group.  

* * * * 

On a related matter a Wall Street Journal columnist pointed out, today,  that the Obama Administration wants GM to abandon one of its most profitable lines of automobiles — GMC trucks and SUV’s.  It seems they aren’t green enough.  Never mind that those are the only products anyone wants.  And never mind that it’s your money being used to prop up GM, right now.

Illinois’ Would Be Economic Planners

From the Statehouse Insider column:

“* With the economy tanking, you can pretty much rest assured you will see a bunch of “Buy American” bills being debated in the General Assembly. You know, it’s the state’s patriotic duty to support American products and workers and when state tax dollars are being spent they ought to be spent on American stuff.

The problem is that long ago it became pretty much impossible to figure out what is an American product. Japanese cars are put together here. American cars are put together in Mexico. Plus, the parts come from all over the place, so who’s to say what is American and what isn’t?

Think that stops the Illinois General Assembly? Nope. The House was prattling along about Buy American the other day when a lawmaker noticed that that the laptop computer supplied to each legislator is made in China. So are the cell phones supplied to them.

Maybe the ultimate insult was when a legislator remembered that the new carpeting in the chamber — installed in the last couple of years as part of the major redecorating — is imported from England.

Next issue.”