Republicans Want to Roll Back Corporate Income Tax

By aaroncynic in News on Dec 15, 2011 5:40PM

A day after handing millions of dollars in tax breaks to major corporate businesses in Illinois, House Republicans proposed rolling back the corporate income tax rate in Illinois to 4.8 percent, the Tribune reports. The proposal reduces the current corporate income tax rate of 7 percent to 6 percent in 2013, and then drops again to 4.8 percent in 2014.

The proposed bill would also link the state’s unemployment rate to the corporate tax rate. Anytime the unemployment rate increases by 0.3 percent in four months, the rate would drop 0.25%. It’s estimated the reduction could cost Illinois up to $900 million. Gov. Pat Quinn said the change could lead to layoffs for teachers statewide and other cuts in education funding. House Minority Leader Tom Cross (D-Oswego) told the Tribune he is “cognizant of the fact that we have a problem with our budget.”

The State Journal Register reports Quinn and Senate President John Cullerton (D-Chicago) were interested in changing the tax code in general. Quinn told reporters:

“I want to do another one -- a tax reform measure, an economic growth measure for next year. Two thirds of the corporations of Illinois today don’t pay any income tax. To be just focusing on one thing and not having a more balanced view is not the way to go.”