Rock Island Today

Sen. Win Stoller (R-Peoria) says a plan by Gov. J.B. Pritzker's administration to use federal COVID funds to only partially pay down the unemployment insurance trust fund debt will bring higher taxes.

“The very worst thing that the government could possibly do is now to force another major tax hike on our employers,” Stoller said. “But that’s exactly what the governor is proposing. We were given all of the money we needed to solve this problem and fix it and avoid this train wreck but we didn’t do it.”

The Pew Research Center reported that approximately 9.6 million United States workers lost their jobs between 2019 and 2020. This took a toll on many states' unemployment insurance trust funds, including Illinois'.

Senate Bill 2803 passed both the Senate (33-15) and the House (68-43) along partisan lines and was signed by the governor on March 25. The bill authorizes putting government COVID funding toward paying off part of the unemployment insurance trust fund debt.

The topic has garnered heat from Republicans such as Sen. Don DeWitte (R-West Dundee).

“This action will lead to the largest tax increase on business in the state of Illinois in this state’s history,” DeWitte said, according to WTTW. “Employers who have been treated with absolute disregard throughout this pandemic will literally be left holding the bag, and will be responsible for filing the remaining deficit to the unemployment insurance trust fund.”

Stoller predicts the move will cause a tax increase on employers.

“We’re facing the possibility of one of the largest tax increases on employers in Illinois history, we’re facing the possibility of significant benefit cuts to people who need them most — unemployed workers, and we’re facing the possibility of trying to borrow our way out of this problem with additional bonding debt,” Stoller said. “Well that's one thing actually we know how to do in this state and that is going into debt.”

The bill makes supplemental appropriations from the Pension Stabilization Fund for financing the unfunded liabilities of the General Assembly Retirement System, the Judges Retirement System of Illinois, the State Employees’ Retirement System of Illinois, the Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois, and the State Universities Retirement System. It also appropriates $250 million from the General Revenue Fund to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission.