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 Illinoisans already pay among the highest gas taxes in the
nation. But drivers in Illinois could soon be paying more taxes at the pump than
in any other state, if a recent gas tax hike proposal finds favor in
Springfield.
In December, outgoing Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel pressed state lawmakers to at
least double the state’s gas tax to fund transportation and infrastructure needs
in the city and surrounding areas.
Specifically, Emanuel recommended hiking the tax by between 20 and 30 cents per
gallon.
But Illinoisans already pay the 10th-highest gas tax in the nation on average,
according to the Tax Foundation. That includes Illinois’ state gas tax as well
as its patchwork of local gas taxes. Illinois is also one of only a minority of
states to pile its layers of state and local sales taxes atop its special gas
taxes – meaning Illinoisans are effectively doubled-taxed at the pump.
The result? Motorists pay 37.3 cents per gallon in taxes on average to fill up
in Illinois – not including the federal 18.4 cent gas tax. If Springfield takes
the upper end of Emanuel’s suggestion – a 30 cent increase – Illinoisans would
pay 67.3 cents per gallon on average in state and local taxes. That would be the
highest total tax burden on gas in the nation by far, according to Tax
Foundation data.
Even on the lower end of the mayor’s range, Illinois’ average gas tax burden
would increase to 57.3 cents per gallon, excluding the federal tax. This would
push Illinois’ overall gas tax burden to second-highest in the nation, trailing
Pennsylvania by just over 1 cent.
Adopting the mayor’s proposal would mean the average motorist using 656 gallons
per year would pay between $130 and $200 more in gas taxes per year in Illinois.
But it isn’t clear whether taking on a higher tax burden will improve
Illinoisans’ bang for their buck when it comes to transit infrastructure. In
fact, other states have proven able to do more for roads and bridges using fewer
tax dollars. Look at Texas: While it’s true that climate plays a role in
infrastructure needs, Texas’ average gas tax burden is 46 percent lower than
Illinois’. The Lone Star State regularly receives recognition for its
best-in-the-nation infrastructure, and keep in mind Texans don’t pay an income
tax.
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Slashing waste and abuse
Illinois has not passed a capital funding bill since 2009. Still,
the fact that other states can provide state-of-the-art
infrastructure in a low-tax environment as high-tax Illinois falls
behind should call into question how Springfield is spending its
existing tax dollars.
Sure enough, a pair of recent scandals revealed significant waste
and abuse in two state infrastructure agencies. In 2017, a federal
investigation into hundreds of “staff assistant” hires made at the
Illinois Department of Transportation found that the agency had for
years been doling out patronage jobs to politically connected
applicants. The agency pushed candidates through the application
process with “‘little or no regard’ for actual hiring need, or
whether the candidate was qualified for the job,” according to the
Chicago Tribune.
The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority more recently demonstrated
its own pattern of patronage. In September, the Daily Herald
reported the tollway board chair had awarded a number of six-figure
positions to political allies. The agency had also contracted with
firms staffed with officials’ family relatives and former political
associates to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.
While addressing those scandals may not on their own account for the
state’s infrastructure needs, they provide a useful roadmap for
where state lawmakers can begin scaling back waste and abuse of
existing tax dollars – before asking for more at the pump.
High taxes are the No. 1 reason Illinoisans cite for wishing to
leave the state. And indeed, outbound Illinoisans have generated
five consecutive years of population loss. Rather than further
burdening overtaxed residents, state leaders must re-evaluate how
current funds are spent. A gas tax hike is only bound to continue
driving Illinois motorists across state lines.
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