Harper Economic Reform Package Would Lift Up the Middle Class

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – As part of her commitment to lifting up middle-class families in Illinois, state Rep. Sonya Harper, D-Chicago, worked to pass a comprehensive economic reform package that cuts taxes and fees on small businesses, provides more incentives to companies to invest in their employee’s education and increases take home pay for workers.

“My top priority is to fight for the needs of the middle class by supporting a fair and balanced budget along with other economic reforms that truly allow them to climb the ladder,” said Harper. “Our families would benefit from additional income to spend, and by providing incentives for local businesses we can grow our local economy and create more jobs.”

Harper is sponsoring House Bill 160, which has important reforms for Illinois’ middle class and small and medium-sized businesses. Included in this package, Illinois workers would receive additional money by an annual increase in the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit. With more disposable income, workers and their families would be able to spend more on goods and services for themselves. The reform package also helps small and medium-sized businesses by reducing a variety of fees and costs on corporations, extending tax credits for businesses that create jobs in Illinois and creating new incentives that encourage businesses to help employees continue their education. The measure recently passed the Illinois House of Representatives.

“It was disheartening to see my Republican colleagues vote against this measure when we included some of their ideas to prove our good faith,” Harper said. “This is no longer the time to play party politics, be stubborn and hold hostage working families and small businesses. I am left wondering who our colleagues on the other side of the aisle really care about, but I remain optimistic that the Senate will debate this bill and send it to the governor, and I urge him to sign it.”