Kalish Joins Fight to Make Billionaires Pay their Fair Share, Provide Relief to Middle-Class Families

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Yehiel “Mark” Kalish, D-Chicago, is joining the efforts of the Pritzker administration to enact a fair tax for Illinois, making the wealthy pay their fair share in order to stabilize state finances and provide tax relief to the middle class.

“Under our current tax structure, we simply do not have the resources to get the state’s fiscal house in order,” Kalish said. “The fair tax puts Illinois on stronger fiscal ground without raising taxes on middle-class families and ensures that our local schools and critical services are fully funded.”

Kalish is backing Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s proposal to amend the Illinois state constitution to allow for a fair tax. A fair tax system Illinois would join the federal government as well as 33 other states, including neighboring Wisconsin, Missouri, and Kentucky, in asking the wealthy to pay their fair share.

The plan Kalish supports provides tax relief for 97 percent of Illinois. Without a fair tax, the state would have to either slash funding across the board by 15 percent or enact a 20 percent income tax hike on every taxpayer, including middle-class families.

“The alternatives to a fair tax would decimate the middle class,” Kalish said. “I am proud to stand with Governor Pritzker and many of my colleagues in the House and Senate as we continue our efforts to pass a fair tax, lift up the middle class and move our state forward.”