CHICAGO, Ill. (WTVO) — Billionaire Jennifer Pritzker has contributed $500,000 to an effort to dissuade voters from approving a constitutional amendment to change Illinois flat tax to a graduated income tax structure this November.
Gov. JB Pritzker has championed the proposal, which would levy increasingly higher tax rates on high-earning individuals or businesses in the state.
Opponents argue the tax will force high earners out of Illinois, but also criticize the bill for lacking safeguards which could stop future administrations from raising tax rates on lower-income earners.
Jennifer Pritzker gave the money to the Coalition to Stop the Proposed Tax Hike Amendment, according to a disclosure filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections on Tuesday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
Both J.B. Pritzker and his cousin are heirs to the Hyatt Hotel fortune.
Under current Illinois law, the flat tax rate is the same for all residents, because the Illinois Constitution says any income tax must be “at a non-graduated rate.”
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