• About Us
  • Write For Us
  • Advertising
  • Support
  • Contact Us
December 2, 2023 4:46 pm CST
Heartland Newsfeed
  • Illinois
    • Local
      • Capital Area
      • East Central Illinois
      • West Central Illinois
    • Regional
      • Chicagoland
      • Metro-East
      • Northern Illinois
      • Quad Cities
      • Southern Illinois
    • Obits
    • Executive Watch
    • Legislative Watch
    • Road Conditions
      • Illinois
    • Weather Closings
      • Central Illinois
  • Missouri
    • Regional
      • Northeastern Missouri
      • East Central Missouri
      • St. Louis Metro
      • Southeast Missouri
    • Executive Watch
    • Legislative Watch
    • Weather Closings
      • Greater STL Metro (IL/MO)
    • Road Conditions
      • Missouri
  • Weather
  • National
  • World
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • OPINION
  • Radio
    • Affiliates
    • Network Schedule
    • Network Streams
    • Podcasts
  • Features
    • Business Directory
    • Classifieds
      • Current Ads
      • Job Board
        • Job Listings
        • J2CTalroo
        • Post a Job
        • Receive Alerts
        • ZipSearch
    • Community Calendar
    • Live Video
    • Newsfeeds
    • Puzzles & More
  • Store
  • Deals
  • Calendar
No Result
View All Result

No products in the cart.

Heartland Newsfeed
No Result
View All Result

OP-ED: Holiday shopping and the sales tax Scrooge

The Center Square by The Center Square
December 16, 2018
in Business & Lifestyle, Business News, Consumer Watchdogs, Editorial, Financial News, Illinois, Opinion, Opinion-Editorial
Reading Time: 3 mins read
Donate
0
The average American will spend around $800 on gifts this Christmas. But making those holiday buys in Illinois will leave many families wishing they could get more bang for their buck. Illinois passed its first state sales tax – 2 percent on all retail goods – all the way back in 1933. It not only replaced revenue that came from the old statewide property tax, but brought in a lot of new money as well. Fast forward to today: Illinois’ average combined state and local sales tax rate is the highest in the Midwest and the seventh highest in the country, according to the Tax Foundation. The state rate stands at 6.25 percent. But lots of local layers add up too, pushing Chicago, for example, to a 10.25 percent combined sales tax. That’s the highest combined sales tax among large U.S. cities. Some blame the high sales tax on Illinois’ middling state income tax. That’s lazy. Seven states in the country have no state income tax at all. All of them but Washington have lower sales taxes than Illinois. And all of them have lower property taxes than Illinois. Other states have figured out how to do far more with fewer public dollars. But another feature of Illinois’ sales tax that explains part of why it’s so high is that it’s narrow. Almost the entire service sector – from haircuts to lawn service – is exempt from sales taxes. A far more efficient, effective and fair way to collect a sales tax is with a lower rate on a broader base of both goods and services. It’s especially good for keeping revenue more stable during economic downturns, unlike the income tax. The current patchwork of sales tax exemptions, oftentimes carved out by special interests, makes for poor policy. Here’s one example: If you give someone a smartphone as a gift this Christmas, you’re also handing them a punishing tax bill. Another Tax Foundation study released this week revealed Illinoisans now pay higher wireless taxes than anyone else. Even though cellphone service is not subject to Illinois’ sales tax, the average combined burden between federal, state and local excise taxes is more than 27 percent. That’s around $300 in taxes every year on a typical cellphone bill. When the rules are complicated, lawmakers look for quick fixes to reap more revenue from a small range of items. Cook County this week voted to restore a 6 percent sales tax on parking apps like SpotHero. And Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel called for doubling the state gas tax, which likely would make it the highest in the nation. Illinois is one of a handful of states to apply its sales tax to gas. Changing how the state levies its sales tax will take a lot of political will. And there are legitimate concerns about doing so. Levying a sales tax not just on services, but things like food and medicine as well, which are currently taxed at a much lower rate, would be painful for low-income residents. Another key problem would be the cash grab. Illinoisans cannot let lawmakers use an opportunity to expand the base as a free pass for billions in new spending. Residents can instead wish for a revenue-neutral sales tax expansion. Not only would that help protect low-income residents, but it would also prevent politicians from jacking up taxes on all sorts of Christmas gifts year after year.
Austin Berg is a writer for the Illinois Policy Institute. Austin can be reached at aberg@illinoispolicy.org.
The Center Square
Website | + posts

The Center Square -- formerly known as Watchdog.org and the Illinois News Network -- and their reporters represent 18 states across the United States as the taxpayers' watchdog, exposing the way government really works.

  • The Center Square
    https://www.heartlandnewsfeed.com/author/illinoisnewsnetwork/
    More than 30,700 Illinois mail-in ballots rejected
  • The Center Square
    https://www.heartlandnewsfeed.com/author/illinoisnewsnetwork/
    Illinois to see two gas hikes in 2023
  • The Center Square
    https://www.heartlandnewsfeed.com/author/illinoisnewsnetwork/
    Illinois sports betting posts big numbers
  • The Center Square
    https://www.heartlandnewsfeed.com/author/illinoisnewsnetwork/
    Two Illinois state lawmakers to retire
Tags: business newsChicagoChristmasChristmas shoppingCook Countyfinance newsholiday seasonholiday shoppingIllinoisincome taxRahm Emanuelsales taxSpotHero
Share197Tweet123Share5Send
  • Workforce training center opens in Litchfield

    1498 shares
    Share 599 Tweet 375
  • Cougars, Salukis settle for tie

    1213 shares
    Share 485 Tweet 303
  • Missouri law to crack down on porch pirates

    981 shares
    Share 392 Tweet 245
  • Missouri Dems critical of proposed tax cut

    959 shares
    Share 384 Tweet 240
  • No management pay raises in UPS deal

    918 shares
    Share 367 Tweet 230

OPERATING HOURS

Online all the time 
Office Hours: 8 AM to 8 PM

Sitemap | Published Press | Privacy Policy
Staff Email | Independent Media | Buy traffic for your website

LIVE WEBSITE VIEWERS

Some rights reserved 2017-2023 by Heartland Newsfeed, a subsidiary partnership by Heartland Internet Media Networks and Heartland Media Group of Central Illinois LLC. Content published by Heartland Newsfeed staff is covered by the BipCot NoGov license. This allows use and re-use by anyone except governments and government agents. License on record. JNews theme designed and developed by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • World
    • Science
  • Entertainment
    • Gaming
    • Music
    • Movie
    • Sports
  • Tech
    • Apps
    • Gear
    • Mobile
    • Startup
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Health
    • Travel

Some rights reserved 2017-2023 by Heartland Newsfeed, a subsidiary partnership by Heartland Internet Media Networks and Heartland Media Group of Central Illinois LLC. Content published by Heartland Newsfeed staff is covered by the BipCot NoGov license. This allows use and re-use by anyone except governments and government agents. License on record. JNews theme designed and developed by Jegtheme.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

WP Radio
WP Radio
OFFLINE LIVE
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
-
00:00
00:00

Queue

Update Required Flash plugin
-
00:00
00:00