A coalition of 70 members of the Illinois House on Wednesday filed a resolution which seeks to thwart a sales tax on advertising.
The resolution, which has broad support from both sides of the aisle, was supported by a coalition of trade associations including the Illinois Association of REALTORS® because of the potential such a policy might have on increasing home prices.
According to the coalition press release: “Illinois’ resolution comes on the heels of a recent vote in Pennsylvania where a similar proposal was just defeated. On November 23, the Pennsylvania Senate voted down legislation that would have eliminated most property taxes in favor of higher taxes on personal income and certain types of advertising.”
Many small businesspeople, among them real estate agents, rely heavily on print and digital advertising to market properties for clients.
Said the Illinois Association of REALTORS® President Mike Drews:
Our members would have no choice but to pass those costs along, further driving up housing costs and making the dream of owning a home less attainable. Illinois gets a bad rap for making it difficult for small businesses to operate. An advertising tax would do little to undercut that narrative that Illinois is increasingly too expensive a place to do business.
The resolution was filed by state Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills. Although Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has not formally proposed an advertising tax, there has been fear that in the effort to address the state’s budget crisis he might resort to the funding measure.
