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His candidacy endorsed by the CTU, Johnson wants to “make the suburbs, airlines and ultra-rich pay their fair share” to generate $800 million in new revenue. His plan includes a Metra “city surcharge” to raise $40 million from the suburbs, a head tax on large companies, raising the real estate transfer tax, and taxing financial transactions.
If this bill passes, say goodbye to local control over all Illinois parks and expect to see open drug and alcohol use, needles, no sanitation and fire hazards, but no ordinary park users.
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
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Interesting to see so many people are afraid to let democracy work. How can anyone oppose a financial transaction tax when we are taxed for every package of gum, gas, food we buy. The financial districts in this country should pay a financial transaction tax. One of the biggest advantages of a financial transaction tax is that it can bring in additional revenue for cities. By taxing transactions, cities can generate substantial income, which can be used to fund public services and infrastructure projects. Now this is the part a lot of y’all don’t like. The possibility of “the Redistribute… Read more »
No thanks! You’re just another ‘real socialism has not been tried’ bot. Those Venezuelans squatting in a Kmart on the south side voted for socialism too, believing they were going to tax the rich and white castizo elite and redistribute it to the poor indios and mestizos.
Let’s Go Brandon!
Everyone in Chicago will get robbed. The only question is if you’ll be robbed by the criminals walking the streets or the criminals walking the halls of government
Complete insanity from an economic illiterate, but you know every union parasite is screaming in support of his lunacy.
His communist rhetoric is no different than every other communist: He’s offering to hurt one group of people in exchange for power. He’s told his voters that airlines, tourists, suburbanites, the financial sector, rich white homeowners, they are the ones that are responsible for his voter’s miserable existence, and he’s going to punitively tax them, maybe even drive them out of the city too. We’ve got a city full of malcontented urban poor, crazy angry cat ladies on antidepressants, and a perpetually unhappy and intentionally agitated union classes. There are too few deplorables in the city left so he’s got… Read more »
Has the black supremacist proposed reparations, too?
Just give him some time.
CTU are a Marxist terrorist organization . Period.
I guess Ken Griffin got out at the right time…
Crazy to think just Ken’s income could’ve generated $35 million in this fantasy city income tax. All those programs now washed away.
Would’ve been great to see him move the day after implementation, blowing a giant hole in the city budget.
Damn I’m glad I left Silly-nois.
Of course, someone needs to tell Candidate Brainiac that Metra isn’t even at 50% of its pre-“Pandemic” ridership (which means less suburbanites coming downtown), and, if you tax tourists and suburbanites MORE, this means they have LESS incentive to visit Chicago and spend any money there.
But no, a panderer has to pander, so have at it.
the “Detroitification” of Chicago continues apace.
And here in full view for all to see are the MARXIST ideas of the CTU on display total REDISTRIBUTION of other peoples wealth
Ken Griffen left Illinois and could not be happier.
You cannot tax someone who has left.
Let the government lackies pay the taxes and eat their own young.
While this is a terrible idea, at least we have a candidate that is putting his position out there for the voters to either get behind or reject. If the voters think this is the best course of action then let the laboratory of democracy sort it out for all to see.
Voters are in control of the future of Chicago.
You are full of Schmitt. Voters have not had any say since the beginning of Richard Daily Sr.
It is democratic sell out to government employees so they can RAPE the poor honest hardworking taxpayers. It must feel good to steal the future generations money. Largest Generational theft in history, nothing but a Ponzi scheme.
“Voters are in control of the future of Chicago.”
Up until a few years ago I would have agreed. Now I think it’s just too late for anyone to fix Chicago (or Illinois). The damage already done is too great.
I see PPF’s point, although I think the audience which benefits from this candidate’s signalling of his plans is the business community and the productive citizen. These kind of initatives causes productive people to leave the City. The CTU has a “sales” problem here because their constant siren calls for more money are raised in a context of very poor academic performance. The upper middle class in the City (or the affected population in the suburbs) don’t attend the schools.
ppf, do you have any of your union dues going to brandon’s campaign?
Nope.
There is truth to that, but it is also misleading to voters because many of his proposals are out of mayoral control. Both a city income tax and financial transactions tax are non-starters legislatively, totally dependent on the GA and governor’s office for passage. His best chance would be to get the legislature to approve a city income tax on city residents only, thereby eliminating pushback from suburban legislators, but that would go against his “someone else” marketing campaign.
Hotel and head taxes are doable and within mayoral control. Of course, he’ll have to convince city council.
Nixit – excellent points. Knowing the political governance of the state is essential. There is something really bothersome about Johnson’s proposals from a metaphysical prospective. He has little confidence the people of Chicago can sustain themselves, and that they are a victim population to be served by others. And to underline it all, the bulk of his proposals can’t be done under local control – it makes him appear he is serving up mere pablum to the teachers union.
He might be right.
This begs the question why outsiders must rescue them. Pity should not drive policy
You’re joking, right? What do you think all the equity initiatives represent? How much of Illinois’ budget is dedicated to medicaid and other welfare benefits? The entire agenda of the progressive party is built on pity for one group and confiscating wealth from another group that’s not deserving of said wealth.
If it wasn’t for pity, the entire budget of the government would be spent on national defense and law and order. While I would be fine with that, clearly the majority of the population doesn’t agree.
Too much of the state budget is dedicated to welfare and medicaid. And half of the medicaid goes to elderly people in long term care facilities IIRC. All of whom vote Democrat twice every election! As for the agenda of the progressive party, it’s not built on pity as much as it is built on anger and rage. The progressives put a happy smiley face on hurting their voters’ perceived enemies. It’s communism. Mao, Lenin, Pol Pot, Castro, they were able to use force and violence against their enemies, in addition to fiscal punishment. Fortunately for our country, we are… Read more »
“but it is also misleading to voters because many of his proposals are out of mayoral control.” That applies to anyone running for the executive branch. While I agree it’s a non-starter at the state level, at least this candidate is letting everyone know exactly what he would want to do if allowed. This is no different that Bill Daley stating that he would seek changes to the constitution to “reform” pensions. He didn’t have the authority to accomplish said task but he let everyone know where he stood and what he would do try to do if elected. Every… Read more »
Hello Mr. Ostrich. There is NO “laboratory of democracy”.
Sounds like his plan is great for the floundering suburban commercial real estate market.
Why? So he can piss it away on union mopes and do nothing grants for poverty pimps? Nah, people will just move. Is this really the best Chicago can up with for an election? A bunch of clowns, a few union moles, some woke angry females and a career Democrat bureaucrat? Has any of them besides crazy Willie actually ran a business or worked private sector?
Brandon just sunk his own ship. His base isn’t large enough to get him to the runoff and a new income tax on the upper middle class isn’t going to convert anyone. People were worried about bracket creep on a millionaires tax, imagine the opinion on one 1/10 the size.
This isn’t even HIS platform; it’s CTU’s. Literally written by same people who don’t create anything but new taxes.
And horrible outcomes in schools – just awful.
agree, and if your a ctu member you have to be asking how much has ctu donated in teachers union dues to Johnson to be flushed down the drain?
this is a good article
“Nearly all of Johnson’s money came from unions, including $600,000 from the American Federation of Teachers; $350,000 from the CTU; $90,000 from the Illinois Federation of Teachers; $50,000 from the Cook County College Teachers Union; $250,000 from SEIU Local 73 representing school employees; and $300,000 from SEIU Healthcare.
Just this week, the American Federation of Teachers contributed an additional $400,000 to Johnson’s mayoral campaign.”
https://www.audacy.com/wbbm780/news/local/brandon-johnson-outraised-all-mayoral-hopefuls-last-quarter
Johnson Is Preckwinkle’s taint-wipe — so tax hikes and massive spending on welfare giveaways are his main policy goals
As for his “$1 or $2 for every “securities trading contract” tax, is he not aware that the CME and CBOE can easily operate remotely? Trading firms and banks have few reasons to remain in this city as it is, introduce this tax and they’re gone.
Yes and I wish they would hurry up and do the inevitable.as threats seem to make no difference anymore. It is time for some real wakeup calls to the public in a manner they just can not ignore any longer for the good of all of us.
Gosh, even in Detroit suburbanites had to work within the Detroit city limits to be subject to the city of Detroit income tax. Even they got the lower non resident tax rate.
the overwhelming majority of city workers are making over $100K + benefits…they are the guaranteed /zero risk upper-middle-class
100K is now “ultra rich”? Under what rock has this idiot been living?
His campaign slogan should be “let’s go Brandon”.
The power to tax is the power to destroy. He’ll be picking up where Lori fell short.
If he gets in count me as gone
You need to plan ahead. Don’t wait until it happens. It will be too late by then, even if you rip the toilets out of your mansion to save on property taxes.
Look out Texas and Florida another wave of Illinois businesses coming your way. Illinois and the Chitty of Chicago do everything within their power to discourage and chase business away. It is working, less and less businesses are left in the Chitty.
Make the Chicago suburbs pay even more for all of the lib/progressive/woke/socialist/Marxist nonsense that’s not working in Chicago at already vast expense.
Gosh, why didn’t I think of that….
Why screw around? Make it an even 9%. Wild ideas will be in short supply soon! If Lori begins to lag further she’ll burn the City down as retribution Lori will show her lefty chops by hosting the annual Antifa, Democratic militia, convocation.
Dick “fair share” Durbin must love Brandon.