In their continuing quest to squeeze more money for their schools, Lake County educators have hit on a new revenue source: A countywide sales tax.
That trial balloon was unveiled by Steve Sadin in a front-page News-Sun story late last month. The effort is being led by officials at Waukegan Unit School District 60, who maintain that an additional 1% sales tax would generate more school funds without having to raise property taxes.
As the biggest school district in the county, District 60 would also be the recipient of the largest amount — $14 million — as any sales tax funds would be split according to student population, Sadin reported. Finance gurus say a countywide sales tax dedicated to schools would mean at least an additional $123 million annually for districts.
First, though, voters countywide would have to adopt what is now a proposal in the early-early stages. Considering the current state of the economy and uncertainty over the raging Iran conflict, don’t expect to see this latest revenue enhancement on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.
If supporters of the wish-list proposition do seek a referendum in the fall, they will have to hurry and sell it to school districts across the county. It would have to be certified for the ballot by Aug. 26, and then backers would have to lobby voters hard.
While school administrators may consider a sales tax more friendly than a hike in property taxes, there are several catches. The biggest being that money raised cannot be used for teachers’ salaries, the largest slice of the school-funding pie.
Using sales taxes to fund schools is not a new idea. For nearly two decades, Illinois law has allowed school districts to use sales taxes for some operating expenses and the construction of new schools. More than half the state’s counties levy sales taxes for school funding.
Lake County residents already pay some of the highest taxes in the nation. As tax season is less than a month away, remember that Illinois is also one of the heaviest-taxed states in the U.S.
Indeed, Illinoisans paid on average 10.2% of their income in state and local taxes in 2025, according to the Tax Foundation, which points out the Land of Lincoln has the highest effective property tax rate in the U.S. We pay more in combined state and local taxes than people in most other states.
The state ranks 38th on the foundation’s 2026 State Tax Competitiveness Index. Illinois also carries about $144 billion in unfunded pension debt as part of its tax burden.
On the sales tax front, Lake County residents average 7% on purchases. Some communities, like Antioch, Deerfield, Grayslake, Gurnee, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Lake Villa, Lake Zurich, Libertyville, Mundelein, Round Lake, Vernon Hills and Zion, are several percentage points above the 7% bar.
If a 1% sales tax were added to Waukegan’s, the rate would jump to 9.5%. There is also that pesky state practice of adding sales taxes after motorists are charged the Illinois gas tax and the four-cent fuel tax levied by the Lake County Board.
As the Iran conflict continues unabated, gas taxes will impact county drivers’ pocketbooks mightily. The national average for gasoline last week was $3.58, up from $2.90 a month ago. The county price at the pump on Sunday was about $3.69 a gallon.
On top of soaring fuel prices, which eventually will filter down to retail purchases, Illinoisans pay the third-highest gas taxes in the nation at nearly 85 cents per gallon in local, state and federal taxes and fees, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The Illinois gas tax doubled in 2019 from 19 to 38 cents a gallon, while automatic annual increases take effect every July 1.
California, the epicenter of our car culture, has the highest gas tax at 89 cents per gallon. Michigan, at 87 cents, edged out Illinois for the second-highest spot.
The federal agency says the national gas tax average is 52 cents. Wisconsin’s is 51 cents per gallon; Indiana’s is 72 cents.
Until last year, Illinois gas tax revenue went into the road fund to maintain the state’s highway infrastructure. That is, until the Democrat-controlled legislature decides to spend $1 billion in the road fund on bailing out mass transit in the six-county Chicago region.
That’s one of the issues with approving funding allegedly dedicated to fixing either schools or roads. What the legislature giveth, it can take away using creative financing for other fanciful pork projects.
Charles Selle is a former News-Sun reporter, political editor and editor. sellenews@gmail.com. X @sellenews.
