As much as $740 million in tax increases prompted by Republican Gov. James Thompson`s proposed budget is likely to be passed by the General Assembly, but not without a fight by legislators from the governor`s own party, a group of Republican state senators vowed Monday.
The senators, representing mostly suburban constituents, made it sound as though they will be in the forefront of opposition to $1.6 billion in tax increases sought by Thompson in the state budget he proposed last month.
The $740 million in new taxes would be about 46 percent of the total Thompson has proposed, though the tax breakdown would differ from the governor`s plans, they said.
For example, the figure would include an increase in the corporate income tax that they said would be a condition set by Democrats before an increase in the personal income tax could be approved. Thompson has pushed for the increase in personal income taxes, not the corporate tax hike.
The GOP senators were attending a conference in Oak Brook sponsored by State Sen. James ”Pate” Philip (R., Wood Dale), the Senate minority leader. ”We`re not here to bash the governor,” said State Sen. George ”Ray”
Hudson (R., Downers Grove). ”But if you were to measure the enthusiasm of suburban Republicans to the proposals on a scale of 0 to 10, it would be somewhere around a minus-2.”
Despite their opposition, the senators said they expect the legislature to approve:
— Increasing the personal income tax to 3 percent from 2.5 percent, producing $520 million in new state revenue.
— Increasing the corporate income tax to 4.8 percent from 4 percent, keeping the ratio between the two taxes at the current 8 to 5. The increase, which would produce $120 million in new revenue, is a condition Democrats will impose before going along with the personal income tax increase, the Republicans said.
— Increasing the gasoline tax by 2 cents per gallon, producing a minimum of $100 million of new money annually. Thompson`s proposal calls for an increase of 9 1/2 cents, phased in over several years.
State budget director Robert Mandeville said the figure of $740 million in new revenue would leave the state`s general revenue fund short at least $160 million of preventing cuts in state services, provided the legislature decides to fund the education reform package approved last year.
House Minority Leader Lee Daniels (R., Elmhurst) predicted last week that the legislature would approve a 5-cent-a-gallon increase in the gasoline tax. He also said it was possible that an increase in the personal income tax and corporate income tax would be approved.
State transportation director Greg Baise, who also appeared at the conference, said a 2-cent increase in the gasoline tax is ”a joke to the people of Illinois.”
”If there is no suburban support, it won`t pass,” he said. ”Suburban legislators have the most to gain from the tax package, but they also have the most to lose.”
Senators and Thompson administration officials on hand for the conference agreed that the governor`s sweeping tax proposals, which also include a rise in license-plate fees and a broadening of the state`s sales tax to include several services, are not winning much support in the suburbs.
”They`re very difficult for all of us politically,” said State Sen. David Barkhausen (R., Lake Bluff). ”We all come from areas of high wealth that provide a great deal of the state`s income. Very little of this money is coming back to our areas.
”If the proposals had come from Adlai Stevenson, we wouldn`t be mincing our words so much,” he said. ”There are a lot of misgivings about the merits of the proposals. Thompson had somewhat the same experience four years ago.” Four years ago, after pledging during his re-election campaign that tax increases were not needed, Thompson also sought a 0.5-percent increase in the personal income tax. The legislature enacted only an 18-month temporary increase.
Despite that, Barkhausen and State Sen. Beverly Fawell (R., Glen Ellyn)
predicted that Republican senators will provide 10 to 12 of the votes necessary to pass the tax increase on June 30, when the legislature is scheduled to adjourn.
”There will be a lot of messages coming from state agencies to us that if we want funding for local programs we`re going to have to get on board the governor`s tax increase proposals,” Fawell said.
A few Republicans had openly opposed the tax proposals before Monday. Two weeks ago, State Reps. Ron Stephens (R., Collinsville) and Terry Parke (R., Schaumburg) held a news conference in Springfield to announce opposition to the plans. Since then, both have taken heat from the Thompson administration.
