Illinois bill could create new 3-cent per gallon local gas tax

House Bill 4424 would give every Illinois municipal government the power to impose a 3-cent per gallon tax on gas without first gaining the approval of local taxpayers at the polls.

As Gov. J.B. Pritzker touts his temporary 1-cent gas tax relief proposal for Illinoisans, new legislation could permanently raise local gas taxes up to 3 cents per gallon.

The proposed legislation would allow municipal governments with fewer than 3 million residents to levy up to a 3-cent per gallon tax on gasoline for road projects without first gaining the approval of local taxpayers at the polls.

This would give each of Illinois’ 1297 municipalities the individual power to raise gas taxes on residents at will.

Proponents say the measure to sidestep taxpayer input into infrastructure projects would not guarantee taxes go up at the pump. It would only give politicians the power to do it without oversight from residents.

Under the current Illinois municipal code, municipalities with over 3 million residents can raise local taxes without first gaining approval from a majority of taxpayers through a public vote, a mechanism designed to circumvent costly multimillion-dollar voter referendums.

No municipality in Illinois has a population of more than 3 million, including state’s largest city, Chicago, at roughly 2.7 million residents. The measure would in turn give every municipality this power.

Illinoisans already pay $105 more per driver a year on gas taxes since Pritzker doubled the state gas tax from 19 cents to 38 cents per gallon his first year in office. The tax hike came with automatic annual increases that have boosted the state gas tax to 39.2 cents.

Combined with federal taxes and state fees, Illinoisans now pay 78 cents in taxes per gallon – the second highest gas tax in the nation.

Limiting taxpayers’ vote on how their money is spent only protects politicians from taking responsibility for overpromising  and the unpopular tax hikes used to pay for it.

Pritzker thinks giving Illinoisans their money back after taking it from them – and promising to take more later – is relief. Real relief starts with repealing automatic gas tax hikes and preserving those savings into the future.