By Cole Lauterbach/Illinois Radio Network
SPRINGFIELD – Illinoisans officially worked enough on April 29 to pay off their debt to government in 2016.
The Washington, D.C.-based Tax Foundation adds up all of the federal, state and local taxes and then divides the number by the national income. Tax Freedom Day is the date when people earn enough collectively to pay off their yearly tax burdens. Under the state-by-state calculation, Illinoisans will have to work for 119 days to pay their taxes for 2016. This is two more days than Wisconsin and 11 more than Indiana.
Joseph Henchman, vice president of legal and state projects at the Tax Foundation, said calculating the dates helps people understand how much of their paychecks go to taxes.
“You can tell people that the national tax burden will be 31 percent of the national income, but the calendar date really speaks to people in a way that those measures don’t,” Henchman said.
Henchman says Illinois is similar to other high-tax states except it has a flat income tax.
“Illinois has very high business taxes, very high property taxes, and sales taxes are up there too. When you add all that up, that means Illinois’ overall tax burden is later than your average state. Individual income tax is one of the saving graces for Illinois.”
According to the Tax Foundation, Americans will spend more on taxes in 2016 than they will on food, clothing and housing combined.
You can read more about Tax Freedom Day at taxfoundation.org.
