Gov. J.B. Pritzker unveils graduated state income tax plan he says would give break to taxpayers earning less than $250K (Chicago: fit in, sales)

[fusillirob1983]

Won’t the minimum wage hike line the pockets of those currently making below the proposed minimum wage? I guess even that’s not true. They’ll probably save little and spend close to 100% of their income to cover basic living expenses.

[aga412]

Originally Posted by fusillirob1983

Won’t the minimum wage hike line the pockets of those currently making below the proposed minimum wage? I guess even that’s not true. They’ll probably save little and spend close to 100% of their income to cover basic living expenses.

Not 100% sure where you're coming from, but since the minimum wage will rise, so also will the cost of goods and services. They'll be worse off since many companies (like Whole Foods an many others) are cutting workers' hours or automating them out of existence. Those people who are now unemployed or working less hours will now have to pay more because everything now costs more. IMO, these minimum wage hikes are Democrat's ploys to get people onto the public dole and increase their voter base, which is abhorrent and disgusting.

[My Kind Of Town]

Originally Posted by aga412

Clearly you are unaware of an axiom by Calvin Coolidge, "It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones."

Doing "something" (which, the "something" you wanted was Rauner capitulating to the Democrats and allowing them to pass one of their woefully unbalanced budgets in the name of doing "something.") Though he could be more effective, at least he wasn't allowing that to happen.

JB is Madigan's rubberstamp. He'll pass all the cockamamie ideas that come out of Springfield as long as they are Madigan approved. The minimum wage hike, and other disasters, which will just line the pockets of the Chicago and Springfield elites while screwing the average Illinoisan, will get his approval. Not every "solution" or "action" is a good action. You shouldn't be happy that someone is "doing something" if that "something" has a net negative impact.

And how exactly did Rauner’s “do nothing” approach benefit the state? All I’m hearing are excuses in the above post. Here’s the bottom line question. Is the state in better shape now or 4 years ago when Rauner first took office? It’s a rhetorical question. Clearly, the “do nothing” approach was equally or likely even more disastrous than the “do something” approach.

[Grlzrl]

Originally Posted by dtcbnd03

If we amend the constitution for a progressive income tax then we should amend the constitution allowing us to reduce pensions. It's the most logical solution to pair the two together.

Originally Posted by My Kind Of Town

Doubt it happens but I’m down with that. If they really want to make the state’s financial woes disappear they can surely do it. Just takes a little political willpower. From what I’ve seen so far, we’ve got a better chance of something dramatic (in a positive way) occurring under this governor than any of the previous three combined.

Then why didn't the situation improve when Pat Quinn raised the taxes? Because they don't want to fix anything. They want to spend more. JB said he was disappointed he couldn't spend more.

Originally Posted by nap1313

This right here! Believe it or not, lots of people over 250k know the incredible deal they have living in Chicago, despite taxes. It’s a deal for most of them given that to pursue similar opportunities, they would be looking at cities with even higher cost of living and less amenities.

I live among those people and I assure you, they aren't saying that. In spite of voting that clown into office, they still gripe about the tax increases and they are bigger than ever between the already huge tax increases 67-100% on state income taxes and property taxes. People were madder than I have ever seen them in 2016 when the huge reassessments came out and then the state tax increased in 2017. I saw more people than ever talking about moving.

Originally Posted by My Kind Of Town

What’s your solution then? All I hear are complaints. JB is thinking outside the box to generate new revenue and I can only hope these changes coincide with some type of pension reform. But you have to start somewhere.

Burying one’s head in the sand would be to do nothing at all (Rauner). At least JB is trying to do SOMETHING to address the situation. Sure beats burying one’s head in the sand and governing a state for 793 consecutive days without an approved budget. That was a great plan!

You don't REALLY believe this is JB's show, do you? And Rauner couldn't do anything because of the Democrat machine. All he could attempt to do was be the firewall.

Originally Posted by aga412

Clearly you are unaware of an axiom by Calvin Coolidge, "It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones."

Doing "something" (which, the "something" you wanted was Rauner capitulating to the Democrats and allowing them to pass one of their woefully unbalanced budgets in the name of doing "something.") Though he could be more effective, at least he wasn't allowing that to happen.

JB is Madigan's rubberstamp. He'll pass all the cockamamie ideas that come out of Springfield as long as they are Madigan approved. The minimum wage hike, and other disasters, which will just line the pockets of the Chicago and Springfield elites while screwing the average Illinoisan, will get his approval. Not every "solution" or "action" is a good action. You shouldn't be happy that someone is "doing something" if that "something" has a net negative impact.

Yep.

Originally Posted by My Kind Of Town

And how exactly did Rauner’s “do nothing” approach benefit the state? All I’m hearing are excuses in the above post. Here’s the bottom line question. Is the state in better shape now or 4 years ago when Rauner first took office? It’s a rhetorical question. Clearly, the “do nothing” approach was equally or likely even more disastrous than the “do something” approach.

See above about Rauner. It's laughable you blame him for the problem.

[aga412]

Originally Posted by My Kind Of Town

And how exactly did Rauner’s “do nothing” approach benefit the state?

Well, unlike JB, he wasn't actively hurting it so... I didn't say doing nothing was "good" per se, but in this case the "nothing" is still better than the "something." What could Rauner do anyway? His hands were effectively tied. Rauner gets a bum rap - he was far from perfect but more far from being the architect of all the state's woes. I don't have words for people that ascribe to the latter notion.

[My Kind Of Town]

No point in discussing further. Your minds are already made up because of the letter next to their name. I get it. There was nothing Rauner could do. His hands were tied so nothing was his fault. Never mind his time as governor will go down as one of the worst in state history. He bears zero responsibility. And JB, well, no matter what he does as governor it’s a huge mistake. He’s only a few months in but, look at this guy, he’s destined to go down as the worst governor in state history for obvious reasons (Madigan puppet). I think that about sums it up. Sad.

[My Kind Of Town]

Back to the topic at hand, as someone that falls into the 97% (sub $250k income group) I think a progressive income tax is a great idea. Sure beats a significant increase to the flat rate income tax and blanket 15% cut to spending, both of which will effect me significantly more than the former.

[Pundcakesss]

Originally Posted by My Kind Of Town

Back to the topic at hand, as someone that falls into the 97% (sub $250k income group) I think a progressive income tax is a great idea. Sure beats a significant increase to the flat rate income tax and blanket 15% cut to spending, both of which will effect me significantly more than the former.

2 huge assumptions there.
You assume the tax rates and the incomes they apply to as presented by JB will be what is actually passed into law 2 years from now (The absolute earliest a progressive income tax system can take effect)
2nd assumption is that since this progressive income tax doesn't directly impact your tax bill it won't impact you at all. Indirect impacts like lost economic opportunity, out-migration, job losses etc will have a negative impact on your family's well being. Some will catch on sooner than later.
All of those cheering for the progressive income tax in Illinois need to watch what is happening in New York with what Governor Andrew Cuomo said was a huge heart attack.

[My Kind Of Town]

Originally Posted by Pundcakesss

2 huge assumptions there.
You assume the tax rates and the incomes they apply to as presented by JB will be what is actually passed into law 2 years from now (The absolute earliest a progressive income tax system can take effect)
2nd assumption is that since this progressive income tax doesn't directly impact your tax bill it won't impact you at all. Indirect impacts like lost economic opportunity, out-migration, job losses etc will have a negative impact on your family's well being. Some will catch on sooner than later.
All of those cheering for the progressive income tax in Illinois need to watch what is happening in New York with what Governor Andrew Cuomo said was a huge heart attack.

I understand it’s nearly two years away. Here’s the other thing I understand. A big increase in the current flat rate income tax and across the board spending cuts (my firm does a fair amount of consulting work for the state) will without a doubt negatively impact me immediately. This is the solution being proposed if the progressive income tax falls short. On the other hand, the indirect impacts associated with a progressive income tax structure might happen at some point in the future. Yea, I’ll take the second option.

[fusillirob1983]

Originally Posted by aga412

Not 100% sure where you're coming from, but since the minimum wage will rise, so also will the cost of goods and services. They'll be worse off since many companies (like Whole Foods an many others) are cutting workers' hours or automating them out of existence. Those people who are now unemployed or working less hours will now have to pay more because everything now costs more. IMO, these minimum wage hikes are Democrat's ploys to get people onto the public dole and increase their voter base, which is abhorrent and disgusting.

You said the minimum wage hike, and other policies, would line the pockets of the Chicago and Springfield elite.