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 Illinois’ Halloween shoppers should expect to pay
more for treats this October after federal reports found national candy prices
jumped more than 13% since last holiday season – the largest single-year boost
ever for candy.
But there’s a way this year to trick the Illinois taxman out of about $1.50.
U.S. candy makers attribute the unprecedented increase in confectionary prices
to decades-high inflation driving up labor costs and the price of ingredients,
including sugar, milk and flour.
Halloween shoppers will spend about $100 per household on candy, costumes and
decorations this October – the second-most ever predicted after 2021, the
National Retail Federation estimated. That leaves Americans paying an extra $14
this Halloween season than before the coronavirus pandemic in 2019.
Of that $100, candy will be $29.51.
Illinois is one of 18 states that does not consider candy to be food, meaning
residents pay 6.25% in sales tax on confectionery items. That’s $1.84 in sales
tax on that $29.51 average candy purchase.
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But there’s a trick to avoiding the tax. In Illinois, treats prepared with flour
are recognized as food, not candy. Grocery items are typically taxed at 1%, but
the 1% grocery tax was suspended in July for a year as part of Gov. J.B.
Pritzker’s election-year “Family Relief Plan.”
Kit Kats, Twizzlers, Hershey’s Cookies ’n’ Cream, Goetze’s Caramel Creams,
Whoppers and Twix all contain flour, so they are not taxed this Halloween. But
they will be again next Halloween, adding about 30 cents to the average
purchase.
When the 1% grocery tax resumes in July, Illinois will again be one of only 13
states that taxes the need to eat. That will again take about $400 million from
Illinoisans.
Trick for you. Treat for Illinois politicians.
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