(The Center Square) – Illinois voters have rejected sales tax referendums in four Illinois counties.
The margins were similar in Adams, Crawford, Lake and Tazewell counties, with between 54% and 57% of voters saying no to a 1% sales tax for school facilities.
Americans for Prosperity Illinois Deputy State Director Brian Costin said the election on Tuesday was about affordability, and there is tax fatigue in Illinois.
“This was an election about Trump, and it shouldn’t be an invitation for Democrats to go back down to Springfield or locally to just decide that they’re going to try to grab more money, pass more referendums, because in all likelihood, the voters will reject that,” Costin told The Center Square.
Costin noted that Gov. J.B. Pritzker defeated Republican Darren Bailey by 36 points in Lake County, but the sales tax referendum lost 57% to 43%.
“I think it’s a warning for Lake County and some of these other counties as well that these referendums are not something that’s palatable or shouldn’t be taken for granted, that the people are just going to automatically side with tax hikes,” Costin said.
With the average sales tax hovering around 9% in Illinois, Costin said both property taxes and sales taxes are high in the state.
Costin questioned why taxes keep going up automatically when public school enrollment is going down.
“Do we need to continually be raising these taxes when we have this population decline in our students? Because the per pupil spending keeps going up and up and up, even without referendums,” Costin said.
Quincy Public Schools officials pushed for the referendum in Adams County. QPS Superintendent Larry Gray said his district’s annual share of the sales tax revenue was estimated at about $8.5 million.
“While the outcome determines how we move forward, it does not change the needs facing our schools or our responsibility to the students, teachers and staff we serve,” Gray said.
The Quincy Board of Education is expected to discuss the results and next steps at its public meeting Nov. 18.
