The state's Green Party gubernatorial candidate believes Gov. Pat Quinn's call for massive cuts to public education was an "artificial device" to push for higher income taxes.
"It's his attempt to frame the issue," said Rich Whitney at a Statehouse news conference today. "By holding out this thread and holding out the solution, you entice legislators to go along with the plan."
Whitney bashed Quinn's budget address and introduced his "alternative plan" to restore the state's hobbled budget, which now has a $13 billion deficit.
It includes six steps, which range from creating a state bank, implementing fees for greenhouse gases and legalizing and taxing marijuana sales. These ideas would raise an estimated $15.8 billion in state revenue, with $2.3 billion left over once the deficit is paid off, Whitney says.
More than $7 billion in revenue would come from a reform of the state's existing tax system.
Whitney said the reform would be similar to Senate Bill 750, which called for raising the individual income tax from 3 percent to 5 percent and the corporate income tax from 4.8 percent to 8 percent.
The bill stalled in the Senate last year.
State Capitol Bureau
