In a recent podcast interview, Governor JB Pritzker said, “I hate the word affordability. I don’t think people really understand the concept.”
While House Minority Leader Tony McCombie has stood with House Republicans to back real relief measures, Governor Pritzker has pushed policies in a different direction. Under Governor Pritzker’s lead, affordability has meant higher taxes, higher costs, and bigger government:
- Illinois has the highest property tax rates in the nation
- Illinois residents pay the highest tax rates in the county
- Democrats have passed 57 tax and fee hikes costing Illinois residents $77 billion
- The average Illinois household now pays nearly $1,400 more per year in state taxes
- Compared to Pritzker’s first year in office, the state is taking $18 billion more from taxpayers
- Illinois has the highest combined state and local tax burden in the nation
While Governor Pritzker dismisses affordability and claims residents do not understand the concept, House Republicans are fighting for real relief by proposing legislation to make life more affordable for working families such as HB 9 which would lower property taxes and HB 4519 which would have no state tax on tips.
Leader McCombie believes working families need relief from the taxes, costs, and reckless spending that have made it harder to live, work, and raise a family in Illinois. Her fight for affordability won’t stop even as the legislative session concludes this spring.