South Central Reporter

Two ballot measures to raise sales and property taxes on Illinois citizens should be down-voted, according to Blaine Wilhour, the 107th District Republican candidate for the Illinois House of Representatives.

“If I lived in those communities, I most certainly would vote against any measures to raise taxes,” Wilhour told the South Central Reporter. “Our taxes are high enough already.”

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago recently proposed an annual 50 percent property tax increases over the next 30 years. In Ford, Lake, Kane, Will and Frankfort counties voters will decide the fate of a 1-percent sales tax increase.

Blaine Wilhour

These ideas come despite Illinois already bearing one of the highest overall tax burdens in the U.S., according to the Illinois Policy Institute.

Wilhour, an Altamont native and former National Guardsman, is taking on Democrat David Seiler and Libertarian Thadeus Freed in the November general election. He most recently served as a Fayette County board member, according to his campaign website, and operates a family farm and construction business.

Wilhour believes the government walks a fine line between requiring taxes to fund vital services, like police and firefighters, and threatening budget cuts when voters balk at tax hikes.

“If we want certain things from government, then we have to pay for it and the money to pay for government programs comes from taxes,” he said. “Too often we see communities in Illinois try to tug on the heartstrings to get taxpayers to go along with tax increases. It is a well-used play from an old playbook and taxpayers should not be fooled by these tactics.”

If Illinois continues trying to tax its way out of fiscal disaster, Wilhour predicts the situation could cause a downward spiral. Outmigration is increasing, with 80 percent of Illinois counties losing residents over the past year, dropping the state’s population size to the sixth largest in America, Wilhour said.

“The high taxes in Illinois are driving people to other states, leaving fewer and fewer people left to pay taxes,” he said. “It is not fair to keep punishing taxpayers for poor decisions our elected officials have made. We need to demand better accountability instead of expecting taxpayers to keep footing the bill for politicians’ bad decisions.”

The 107th House District includes Bond, Clinton, Effingham, Fayette and Marion counties, and the cities of Altamont, Centralia, Effingham, Greenville, Kinmundy, Salem, St. Elmo, Vandalia and Wamac.