Illinois- YIKES!!

[Snaggletooth]

Fresh off the press is a 66% increase in the Illinois state income tax. Tax rate increases from 3% to 5%. The percentage is still less than some neighboring states but this all works into a comprehensive tax package.

To appease some constituents, a 2% ceiling on spending was also passed. However, states, cities, subdivisions, etc. pension benefits are exempt from the 2% ceiling, as it was successfully argued that the pension programs by themselves would soak up most of the ceiling.

The 5% rate lowers to only 4% in the future. (We'll see).

[Peachie]

I see something

similar coming to GEORGIA in the very near future. How about possibly 2012?

Peachie

[veritas]

I like this response

"It's like living next door to `The Simpsons' — you know, the dysfunctional family down the block," Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels said in an interview on Chicago's WLS-AM.

[gkaiseril]

And the capital of Illinois is?

Now how many Homer Simpsons live there or work there.

There is a block of legislators that are so against metropolitan Chicago they blocked a casino there and Indiana brought casinos to their Northwest section and reaped 10 million in gambling revenue. The block of legislators responded by revoking the wage reciprocity with Indiana.

They also have not paid into the state employees pension fund for a number of years and are many months behind in paying non-state social service agencies and health care providers.

Now Indiana is the only neighboring state with a lower income tax rate than Illinois. Illinois used to have the lowest income tax rate of all of it's neighboring states.

Is there a pattern beginning to appear here?

Illinois for 2010 is now collecting use tax on out of state purchases as part to their individual tax return.

[erchess]

Applaud Ilinois

It was necessary to either increase taxes or cut essential spending. The state made the right choice. Those of you who don't think so should be glad I am not in charge of the taxes you pay.

[FEDUKE404]

Agreed!

It was necessary to either increase taxes or cut essential spending. The state made the right choice. Those of you who don't think so should be glad I am not in charge of the taxes you pay.

Illinois is just leading the pack regarding the choices that several states will need to make in the near future so as to resemble something close to solvency.

Unlike the (blanks) in Washington, the Illinois legislature cannot fire up the money printing presses.

And Erchess made a very good point!

FE

[Edsel]

I am glad

I am glad that Erchess is NOT in charge of the taxes I pay.

The whole mentality is summed up in the paragraph about the entitlement of govt workers to a cushy pension, so lavish that the state could not include them in their ceiling.

Govt employee organizations point to Cadillac-style pensions of Ford, GM, GE, etc. and they should thus be entitled to the same. I would agree with them, except nowadays relatively few are covered by GM-style pensions, and the Fords, GMs, GEs, etc. are bailing out of them as fast as they can.

[JON]

Pensions and union contracts

busted the auto industry. It will never be the same. The Government has gotten away with it for years, but we let them. The pensions have a BIG unfunded problem also. Ohio through their stimulus money into their public employees pension plan. That did not go over well with DC, but they said that was their main current problem.

I do not think anyone has a defined benefit plan except government and teachers. Most plans were converted to cash basis in the 80s and 90s as in the real world they could see were it was going to end up. In the government sector they are spending other peoples' money and it works for them.