Editorial: Now isn't the time for thinking small

Editorial: Now isn't the time for thinking small
Copyright by The chicago Sun-Times
August 4, 2010
http://www.suntimes.com/news/commentary/2563216,CST-EDT-edit04a.article


Illinois needs a tax increase. And it should be "substantial," just like Gov. Quinn's budget director said last week.

There, we said it.

Thank God no one at this newspaper is running for public office.

Because when you're running for public office, you can't possibly say what you really think.

Quinn came face-to-face with that truism last week after his budget director, David Vaught, predicted a January tax increase while being interviewed by Bloomberg News.

"We fully expect that we're going to pass a tax increase in January," Vaught said. "We think it's going to be substantial."

Vaught spoke of a "range of possibilities" for an income tax increase, from the 1 percentage point increase Quinn is pushing to the 2 percentage point increase that passed the state Senate in 2009, which Quinn supported at the time. In the interview, Vaught and Quinn's director of capital markets made it clear they prefer the 2-point increase, from 3 percent to 5 percent, which would generate about $6 billion against a $13 billion state deficit.

Quinn moved quickly to quash talk of a 2-percentage point increase, saying he would veto any increase of more than 1 percentage point.

That's election talk, of course.

Like most informed state budget watchers, Quinn must know the state needs a bigger tax increase.

Even with massive budget cuts, substantial government restructuring and pension reform, there is no way to balance the state budget -- and maintain quality schools, social supports and other vital services -- without a major influx of new revenue. lllinois' 3 percent income tax rate, you'll recall, is among the lowest in the country. The overall tax burden for Illinois residents, as a percentage of personal income, also is among the lowest in the country.

Quinn's budget director simply laid out the state's financial reality and dared utter what is regularly said behind closed doors, even by some Republicans.

The real shame is that Quinn has now backed himself into a corner. If he wins re-election, he can propose no more than the 1-percentage point tax increase, offering up a measly compromise when Illinois needs tough, courageous leadership.