J.B. Pritzker will be the new governor of Illinois come January
2019. And Rahm Emanuel will remain mayor of Chicago until May 2019.
As part of that overlap, Illinoisans may see a hike in the gas tax, according to
reporting from the Chicago Sun-Times.
“Topping Emanuel’s legislative wish-list is a transportation funding bill,
possibly bankrolled by an increase in the gasoline tax, that’s needed to pay for
a backlog of capital projects at the CTA and Metra,” wrote Sun-Times City Hall
reporter Fran Spielman.
The state last passed a capital bill in 2009, when it appropriated $31 billion
for infrastructure projects.
Layers of taxation at the pump
The gas taxes Illinoisans pay can be far higher than in most other states
because Illinois, along with just six other states as of 2017, levies a sales
tax on gasoline.
When gas prices rise, Illinoisans shoulder among the most painful gas taxes in
the country. In 2011, for example, when gasoline cost more than $4 a gallon,
American Petroleum Institute data showed Illinoisans paid the third-highest gas
taxes in the country.
The state imposes just a few of many layers of taxes on gas in Illinois. The
typical Chicagoan’s gasoline bill includes the following taxes:
-
A federal motor fuel (excise) tax of 18.4 cents
-
State underground storage and environmental fees of a
little over 1 cent
-
A slew of sales taxes that total 10.25 percent*:
-
6.25 percent state sales tax
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1.25 percent Chicago sales tax
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1.75 percent Cook County sales tax
-
1.00 percent Regional Transportation Authority sales
tax
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And more state and local motor fuel (excise) taxes:
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19 cent state motor fuel tax
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5 cent Chicago motor fuel tax
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6 cent Cook County motor fuel tax
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*How these taxes are layered on matters. Illinois
sales taxes are first applied on the base cost of gas plus the
federal tax and environmental fees. Then, state and local excise
taxes are layered on after the sales taxes are applied.
Per-mile driving tax
As a candidate, Pritzker wondered aloud about forcing drivers to pay
a per-mile road user fee in addition to exorbitant gas taxes. He
later walked back his remarks. But Pritzker is not the first
Illinois politician to float this idea. Senate President John
Cullerton, D-Chicago, proposed a similar per-mile tax plan in 2016.
House Resolution 766, filed Jan. 23, 2018 by state Rep. Charles
Meier, R-Highland, opposes any state taxes based on the number of
miles driven.
Where would the money go?
Because of a constitutional amendment approved by Illinois voters in
2016, any money from the gas tax can only be used for transportation
projects.
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