Is Illinois Taxing Away Business and Jobs?

By Reboot Illinois

Illinois' corporate income tax has been in the news lately thanks to a bill in the Legislature that would require publicly traded companies in Illinois to make public their state income tax information.

Supporters of the bill say it's needed to make sure companies are paying what they're supposed to pay and to revise the tax code. Opponents say it's unnecessarily intrusive and puts companies in Illinois at a competitive disadvantage.

That disadvantage may already exist in Illinois' business tax rate, which in 2011 rose from 7.3 to 9.5 percent (2 percent of that figure comes from the personal property replacement tax). That's well above the rate of all its neighboring states except Iowa.

Reboot Illinois has created a graphic that puts the state business tax into perspective. As you view the graphic, keep in mind that when the tax increase was passed in January 2011, Illinois was a mere .3 of a percentage point above the national unemployment rate. Today we're a full 1.9 points higher. 

Click here to visit Reboot Illinois to view the graphic.

TAX CLIMATE: Has Illinois created a hostile environment for business and jobs through its tax system? The Tax Foundation thinks so. Illinois was the 17th most business-friendly state in 2011. See how far we've fallen and the Tax Foundation's opinion why in a piece by Lily Oberman.

CARTOON CLASSIC: Thinking about Illinois' business taxes and unemployment got us thinking about this cartoon from the Chicago Tribune's Scott Stantis earlier this year. Stantis draws up his own Midwest business map, with some political commentary mixed in. Click here to see the comic.