SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — House Speaker Michael Madigan says the state’s income tax should be restored to the 5 percent level it was at until January.

The Chicago Democrat told a City Club of Chicago crowd that the state’s multibillion-dollar deficit demands a tax hike.
A temporary increase from 3 percent to 5 percent expired last winter with incoming Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s blessing. It dropped to 3.75 percent.

Madigan says the 5 percent level would be a “good place to begin.” However, in a press release Wednesday, he said when it comes to solving the state’s budget deficit, he believes they need to take a balanced approach that includes a combination of new revenue and reductions in state spending.

A cuts-only budget, as the governor proposed earlier this year, says Madigan, would severely cut medical care services for the elderly, the disabled and struggling families, would hurt middle-class families and would do more harm than good. That’s why we need a balanced approach.

According to Madigan, they have no plans to advance legislation to change the income tax rate, and says he is committed to working with the governor to develop a budget that provides for a balanced approach to solving our budget deficit.

Democrats are locked in a standoff with Rauner over a state budget which should have taken effect July 1. They want increased taxes and spending cuts to balance the books.

Rauner wants far-reaching changes to improve the business climate which Madigan calls “extreme.”
A Rauner spokeswoman did not have an immediate comment.