Sandoval: Bad timing for income tax hikes in Illinois!

State Senator Martin Sandoval (D-12) (second from the right) during a recent Senior Citizen Forum in Cicero. The residents are concerned about the size of income tax hikes proposed by Governor Pat Quinn.

Springfield, Illinois - In the midst of a severe recession affecting millions of working families, Senator Martin A. Sandoval Chairman of the Illinois Senate Transportation Committee is reluctant to support higher income taxes as proposed by Governor Pat Quinn in order to plug the state deficit reaching a staggering $11.5 billion this year.
"A sound Capital Bill should include the creation of jobs. That should be our priority in Illinois through our own Stimulus Package," stated Chairman Sandoval who estimates that a 1 percentage point increase in the personal income tax as proposed would only bring in around $4 billion.

Quinn plans to increase the individual tax rate by as much as 50 % to possibly 4.5 percent. Also in the works, there would be hikes in the corporate income taxes on businesses. Chairman Sandoval says that Governor Quinn should obtain bipartisan consensus to find a combination of revenues that will solve our debt without hurting taxpayers. "I understand that in his six weeks as governor, Quinn has tried to rescue the state from his predecessor's legacy. But I think that he should consider a combination of other sources of revenues and fees that might include a slight increase of the income tax percentage in order to plug the budget deficit," said Chairman Sandoval.

Senator Sandoval suggests looking into: Lottery revenues, Motor Fuel taxes, casino operations, Driver License's and Plates fees as new sources.
"As a Chairman of Transportation, I will work with Governor Quinn and my colleagues in the Senate to provide the best possible solution to resolve the crisis without further hurting our working families."
Sandoval represents 250,000 residents of the 12th Legislative District that includes the Southwest Side of Chicago, the Town of Cicero, the Village of Stickney and the City of Berwyn.