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Sen. Dick Durbin: Gov. Pat Quinn 'has no choice' but to raise state income tax: Quinn has 'no choice,' he says; Daley not ready to approve or condemn(Chicago Tribune Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Mar. 15--U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin on Saturday praised Gov. Pat Quinn for proposing an income tax increase, saying Illinois' new chief executive "has no choice." "Well, this is Gov. Quinn's responsibility, but I'm glad he has the good sense to face it," Durbin said. "We have become a deadbeat state; we have hospitals and doctors and nurses providing medical care to the poorest people in the state and not getting paid for it." Mayor Richard Daley, who for years has been calling for more state money to help Chicago, was noncommittal on the income tax hike idea, however. "Before you see anything, they'll be a lot of proposals and a lot of looking at it, but I think you have to look at it before making any comment," Daley said. Two of the state's leading politicians weighed in on the issue at the downtown St. Patrick's Day Parade, where Quinn remained mum on the size of the tax hike proposal he'll unveil Wednesday. The Tribune has reported Quinn is considering asking lawmakers to raise the state income tax to 4.5 percent from 3 percent, according to sources. Quinn also wants to raise the exemption to $6,000 per person from $2,000 to shield lower-income earners from the tax increase. Durbin said Quinn needs to get the state's finances in order "if he's going to lead, which the previous governor did not do," a reference to the deposed Rod Blagojevich, who often was criticized for spending money the state didn't have while opposing an income tax hike. "I don't have a solution for Gov. Quinn or the General Assembly, but I think it's time for us to face that reality," Durbin said of a tax increase. [email protected] To see more of the Chicago Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.chicagotribune.com. Copyright (c) 2009, Chicago Tribune Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |