Yingling Advances Measures to Cut Taxes, Consolidate Government and Backs Balanced Budget During Legislative Session

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Sam Yingling worked to pass measures to help provide tax relief to middle-class families, reduce the size of government and helped pass a balanced and bipartisan budget this legislative session.

“When I talk to the families of my district, they tell me that they are facing tax burdens that continue to rise, making it difficult for them to make ends meet,” Yingling said. “This week, I helped to pass a truly bipartisan budget that cuts state bureaucracy while investing more money in local schools. After nearly 3 years of fiscal crisis due to Rauner’s budget impasse that ballooned state debt and slashed programs for our communities, I am particularly proud that Republicans and Democrats were able to come together this year and negotiate a budget that will reduce state spending without raising taxes.”

During the legislative session, Yingling passed multiple measures that save taxpayer dollars by consolidating government agencies and streamlining government services. Yingling supported House Bill 496 which creates a process for township governments to dissolve. Additionally, Yingling worked closely with Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington, to pass bipartisan legislation, House Bill 4637, making it easier to dissolve local units of government in Lake and McHenry County.

“Illinois has the most layers of government in the entire country—over 4,000—and taxpayers are forced to pick up the tab for the inefficiency of our bloated government bureaucracy,” Yingling said. “While we still have more work to do, these proposals move us in the right direction by empowering local residents to streamline and consolidate government services.”

Yingling continued his track record of fighting to deliver property tax relief as the chief sponsor of House Bill 5775. This bipartisan measure works to bring property tax exemption uniformity between Cook County and the collar counties by raising the exemption limits for DuPage, Lake, McHenry and Will counties from $5,000 to $8,000 for the senior homestead exemption and from $6,000 to $10,000 for the general homestead exemption.

Yingling passed Senate Bill 2544 to put a referendum on the November 2018 ballot for voters to decide whether or not to make the Chief Assessment Officer of Lake County (county assessor) an elected position. Currently, the assessment officer is appointed by the Lake County Board Chair, who is not popularly elected.

Additionally, Yingling helped pass a measure offering relief to middle-class families that would see their tax burden raise drastically due to Donald Trump’s tax plan that caps the State and Local Tax Deduction (SALT).  The Yingling sponsored House Bill 4237 creates an educational tax credit for taxpayers to help deduct their SALT through a charitable donation to public education.

“Property taxes in Lake County are the 7th highest in the nation. Residents of my district are unfairly burdened with these outrageous taxes and it’s fundamentally unfair that homeowners in Cook County are able to claim higher deductions than homeowners in Lake County,” Yingling said. “We need to focus on providing tax relief for all homeowners in Illinois and ensure that we are offering solutions to proposals like the Trump tax plan that will raise taxes on the middle class to give a handout to the ultra-wealthy.”