Legislators, challengers weigh in on raising taxes

Less than 30 days from the general election, candidates running for a handful of suburban seats in the Illinois legislature aren't making any bold promises about not raising taxes.

The candidates mostly agree it wouldn't be prudent to increase taxes amid a reeling economy, rising unemployment and soaring fuel costs.

Yet, with the state's depleted general revenue fund, massive budget cuts to scores of social service providers across the state, as well as cuts to transit and forest preserve agencies, rumors linger in the House and Senate about possible income and sales tax hikes after the election.

The Daily Herald asked area state legislators and their challengers in the Nov. 4 general election under what circumstances they would support raising the state income or sales tax.

Here are their responses from candidate questionnaires and interviews:

Senate District 26

Republican Dan Duffy and Bill Gentes each say they are against increasing sales or income taxes in Illinois.

Each is making his first run for a state Senate seat.

"I will not support any tax increases," said Duffy, 42, a business co-owner from unincorporated Lake Barrington. "We are fiscally challenged in Illinois because we have a spending problem in Springfield."

Duffy said he wants all state checks that are written to be posted on a Web site because it would lead to less frivolous spending. He said he's against decreasing local property taxes and increasing the state income tax to fund education.

Gentes, 49, mayor of Round Lake, also objects to the so-called tax swap to fund education, and said state spending must be carefully scrutinized.

"I am not convinced that our state has a revenue problem," Gentes said. "I think we have a spending problem."

The 26th District stretches from Libertyville Township in Lake County west to Nunda, McHenry and Dorr townships in McHenry County, and part of Palatine Township in Cook County.

Senate District 30

State Sen. Terry Link says with the country in the throes of an economic recession now is not the time for the state to increase income or sales taxes, while his Republican challenger Keith Gray says there could be circumstances where an increase is justified.

"I believe we have options that need to be considered prior to the increasing of taxes," said Link, a four-term incumbent.

Link, 61, a Waukegan Democrat who leads the party's Lake County wing and is the Senate majority caucus chairman, said those options include restructuring the state's pension debt, and possibly expanding gambling, which can help fix schools, roads, create infrastructure and jobs.

Gray, 47, a small-business owner from Mettawa, says he wouldn't be so quick to reject the idea of a possible tax increase if, without it, the state stands to lose out on billions of dollars in federal funding.

"I wouldn't do it purely to fund the programs that we have right now because in a year or two we would be back in the same place," Gray said.

Gray also believes the state has "a spending problem, not a revenue problem."

"In order for me to vote for any tax increase, I'd have to be convinced first that there was a serious effort to identify and eliminate waste in state spending and to look critically at ways to provide services more efficiently," he said.

Both candidates said they would not support a tax swap to fund education.

Gray said he doesn't trust state legislators to do the right thing if they gain control of money earmarked for education. "I believe that they would divert funds the way they have diverted other funds such as transportation, such as not funding teachers pensions," he said.

Link, who heads a commission reviewing property taxes throughout the state, says anyone can promise a decrease in property taxes, but in reality, many variables affect it.

The commission is studying the way tax assessments are done, as well as the effects of tax breaks for groups such as senior citizens, the impact of special taxing districts, and how schools and government services are funded through property taxes.

"I would not support a swap right now because until we get property tax under control, I think it would be a misleading statement to give to people because I don't think we would be giving true property tax relief," he said.

The 30th District covers eastern Lake County from Waukegan south to North Chicago and southwest to Green Oaks, Mettawa, Lincolnshire and Riverwoods and a small portion of Cook County.

House District 51

Democratic candidate Amanda Howland is open to the idea of a tax swap to help fund education, but Republican incumbent Ed Sullivan Jr. is not.

Sullivan, 39, is running for a fourth term. He's facing a second challenge from Howland, whom he defeated in 2006.

Sullivan, a Mundelein resident who's also Fremont Township's assessor, said Illinois residents already are paying "an overly burdensome" amount of taxes now and he will not support increasing that burden. He criticized the Democratic majority in Springfield for delivering a budget that wasn't balanced despite increased revenues. Across-the-board spending cuts are needed just to make ends meet.

And with the economy struggling, now is not the time to increase taxes, he said.

Sullivan also opposed a long-proposed tax swap that could decrease property taxes and increase income tax to fund education. Problems could arise if income levels and retail sales decrease, as they are now because of the nation's economic problems, he said. Additionally, it likely would result in higher taxes for some people in the district, he said.

Conversely, Howland said she'd consider any reasonable proposal for education funding, including a tax swap.

A tax-swap plan would have to include provisions that guarantee the property-tax reduction wouldn't be reversed, she said.

"That would defeat the whole purpose if it," said Howland, 56, an attorney from Lake Zurich.

Additionally, Howland said she opposed any new taxes that would put further financial stress on middle- or lower-class residents.

Like Sullivan, she said lawmakers must look for ways to reduce wasteful spending.

The 51st District includes much of central and southern Lake County and a small portion of Cook County.

House District 52

Democrat challenger Richard Garling and incumbent Republican Mark Beaubien differ on other issues, but they agree increased taxes should not be pursued in the state.

Garling, 52, an Island Lake trustee, said instead of higher taxes, the state should pursue a capital improvement program to bolster infrastructure, in turn attracting business and creating jobs.

"As a result, increased tax monies will flow from the improved infrastructure paying the cost of these and additional state services," Garling said.

Beaubien, 65, of Barrington, said he's opposed to hikes in income and sales taxes. He said finances can improve by enacting zero-based budgeting, which would require heads of state agencies to prove why they need the money they're seeking.

"It has been my experience at both the county and state level that any new revenue goes to expanding programs or creating new ones," Beaubien said. "It will not solve our crucial problems like full funding of our pension system."

Neither candidate is in favor of a tax swap.

The 52nd District includes west and southwest Lake County from Fox Lake, Round Lake, Island Lake and Wauconda south to Barrington in Cook County and Crystal Lake, Cary, and Fox River Grove in McHenry County.

House District 59

Incumbent state Rep. Kathleen Ryg and her Republican opponent Daniel J. Sugrue both oppose the idea of increasing the state's income or sales taxes.

"Given our current economic conditions, I don't believe working families should be taxed further," said Ryg, 56, a Vernon Hills Democrat. "The priority right now is restoring the taxpayer confidence in the economy and in our government."

Sugrue, 44, a Green Oaks attorney, says lawmakers cannot justify any tax increases, "given the amount of waste in our budget."

The candidates agree the state government's credibility and accountability is seriously damaged.

Ryg also isn't too gung-ho about the long-proposed idea of a tax swap to fund education.

"Were we to do something like that, we would need to invite all the stakeholders to the table and negotiate something that gives assurances that the suburban school districts don't lose revenues," she said.

She added, school districts should have the option of asking voters through a referendum for monies to build facilities their community wants.

Sugrue said while Illinois property taxes are too high and need to be lowered, he is against a tax swap.

He said he simply wouldn't trust state government with the money considering the current administration's record of redirecting money out of state employees' pensions, teachers' pensions, and road funds.

"Frankly, I just don't have a whole lot of confidence that all this money that they are promising for education is actually going to be spent on education," he said.

The candidates agree it would take away local control of education dollars.

The 59th District is in east central Lake County and northern Cook County from Park City south to Green Oaks, Vernon Hills, Lincolnshire, Riverwoods and Wheeling.

House District 61

Neither Republican Incumbent JoAnn Osmond of Antioch nor her Democratic challenger, James H. Parks, also of Antioch, favor raising taxes, especially during tough economic times.

Though, Park says he would "reluctantly" raise taxes on wealthier individuals or businesses as a last resort. "I don't believe we've have exhausted all of our new revenue options," Parks said. "I do not support a tax increase that would impact the average working family."

Parks, 60, an independent sales representative, said depending on the details of the plan, he could support an income tax increase on individuals making $250,000 a year to fund education. But, he quickly added, that plan would need to include a decrease in property taxes.

Osmond is against any tax increase for any reason. She says the state needs to get its house in order first.

"The state of Illinois needs to learn how to budget," Osmond said. "First, you figure out your income and your expenses just like any household would. That needs to be balanced. Until we can prove that we can be more responsible with our budget, I don't support any tax increase."

The 61st District covers northern Lake County from Lake Michigan to the county line.