Natalia Chi
CHICAGO – Chicago mayoral candidate Brandon Johnson He promised on Tuesday that if elected, he would push for a municipal income tax and a long list of other fees and taxes to pay for unfunded civil servant pensions and to hire more government workers to deliver social services.
“A $1 billion investment in our schools, jobs, health care, safety and transportation. And I’m doing all of this without raising property taxes,” Johnson said.
Johnson would, however, raise many other taxes, including a first Chicago income tax on those making $100,000 a year; a new $98 million jet fuel tax on airlines; a “house tax” on home sales; a $100 million tax on banks and securities trading; another $30 million tax added to Chicago’s highest hotel tax in the nation; and a $40 million surcharge on Metra commuter rail tickets.
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At the county council, Johnson sponsored a resolution to cut police funding.
“My budget also takes a closer look at the budget that keeps getting bigger and bigger, and that’s the police budget. What we have are hundreds of thousands of dollars and millions of dollars going to things that are wasteful.” Johnson said.
CHICAGO MAYORAL CHALLENGER BRANDON JOHNSON UNVEILS TAX PLAN
With 300,000 downtown employees who left during the pandemic who haven’t returned, a Chicago income tax would likely convince some to never return.
Plus, Metra ridership is just half of what it was in 2019. Johnson’s surcharge would certainly bring that down.
Then, there are his proposals for “new user quotas” on “high-end commercial districts frequented by the wealthy.” Maybe he somehow lost all the empty storefronts on North Michigan Avenue?
