Tax Hike Backers Rally At State Capitol, Thousands Turn Out (VIDEO)

An estimated 15,000 people gathered at the Capitol in Springfield Wednesday calling for a tax increase that could stave off major budget cuts. The gathering, dubbed the "Save Our State" rally virtually shut down traffic around the Capitol building and is expected to be one of the largest demonstrations ever in Springfield.

The State Journal-Register reports that the rally, sponsored by the Responsible Budget Coalition, includes 200 organizations from across the state. More than 250 buses brought thousands of people to Springfield from throughout Illinois.

"We tried to make it as big and as large as possible to get people's attention," said John Bouman, president of the Shriver Center in Chicago, which is part of the Responsible Budget Coalition.

State employees looking to head out for lunch were told to think again, and that it will be "virtually impossible" to leave the Capitol complex by car in the early afternoon, SJR reports.

The rally comes as support for Gov. Pat Quinn's proposed 1-percent income tax hike is lacking. The Chicago Sun-Times reports that last week, "a key legislative source estimated the $2.8 billion tax hike had only about 45 votes in the House, where 60 are needed."

Sen. Bill Brady, Quinn's Republican opponent, is against the tax hike--and has called a 10 percent across-the-board budget cut over ten years.

Those who would be most affected by the budget cuts if the tax hike does not succeed plan on making their case in Springfield Wednesday.

"I think it's a testament to the scale of the budget disaster and the terrible harm to these jobs and services that are needed now more than ever in this recession that so many folks from all over Illinois are coming together for this tremendous event," Anders Lindall told the State Journal-Register. Lindall is the spokesman for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which will be participating in the rally.

Buses from Chicago and suburbs have also headed south to address the budget crisis.

"The bottom line is, it hurts the kids," St. Charles Education Association President Pam Turriff told the Daily Herald of the budget cuts. "We just want to make the legislators aware that we all feel they need to step up to the plate and fund education for all kids."

Follow the Twitter feed from the rally here.

WATCH teachers discuss why they are rallying for a tax hike:

Comments

[Bude]

10:29 PM on 04/22/2010

Teachers unions are directly responsible for the decline of education in America.

Tenure is another name for early retirement.

[billsmile]

08:05 PM on 04/23/2010

People don't become teachers to become millionaires. They do it largely to serve the public. Isn't that admirable?

Unions are democratic institutions. Tenure is valued by "we the working people."

What's wrong with democracy?

[skazer]

06:06 PM on 04/22/2010

Looks like racist group to me. I don't see many people of color.

[Bude]

10:30 PM on 04/22/2010

Wrong story wingnut.

[HC32]

11:43 AM on 04/22/2010

Yeah, more taxes so I can get more pay and benefits, which are already better than most.

These are the same people who got us in this mess.....go home.

[coolaid8]

10:34 AM on 04/22/2010

A recent drunk driving incident involving a public official's son brought to light the fact that Illinois has 180,000 state cars on the road and doesn't know where they are. who has them, or what they are used for. This is yet another example that there are many, many places to cut spending that will not impact education or public safety. We need to end all this taxpayer abuse before we discuss taxing more. Delinquent children of state senators do not need taxpayer-funded vehicles.

[coolaid8]

10:31 AM on 04/22/2010

In case anyone is wondering how all those union teachers got the day off, Chicago has "report card pick-up" days where there are no classes. Parents come in in person to discuss the report cards with the teachers. Those teachers who were rallying for tax hikes left substitutes who don't know the children to discuss their progress with the parents. How's that for dedication?

[rchsod]

11:47 PM on 04/21/2010

i was there today.....who ever wrote the article made things up.... from the estimates i heard there was around 10,000. there` was`t 250 buses. most of the people there took time off or were off today. we spoke to our republican senator and he agreed that a tax increase was needed but he did`t trust either his party or the dems from taking the money and spending on new programs. he knows the state has to raise taxes but it`s election time and well those who these unions serve will have to wait. there`s some big issues with the way our state spends money but to let those who have the least suffer...well that`s not very christian is it those who profess in believing in christ`s message.

oh yes the trip did`t cost you poor republicans a dime. this trip was funded by union dues and people`s time off. my wife and everyone else on our bus had the day off. . we even had the republican guy who owns the company my wife works for in our union tent because he wants to be paid the 2 or so million the state owes him. see even republicans want to get paid.

[HC32]

11:44 AM on 04/22/2010

GASB rules will reveal the truth.

[krz2]

01:06 AM on 04/23/2010

your tax bill is a minimum amount due. Anyone, who thinks that God is going to judge them based on their willingness to pay taxes to the state, can and should write a generous check far greater than they owe.

[krz2]

09:57 PM on 04/21/2010

Because of technology inovation and the internet, many high earners are going to vote against higher Illinois taxes with their feet. I grew up in suburban Chicago, and moving is a major hassle. Leaving friends and family is not pleasant , but i am d-o-n-e. Raise my taxes and this high earning tax payer is outahere!. Texas, Florida, Nevda, Montana,maybe Singapore. iIm not sure yet., but it'll be a new adventure.Good luck with your union contracts, pensions and "services". we all can't do without. And I'll make sure not to let the door hit me in the rear end on the way out. Bye!!

[cornfield]

07:29 PM on 04/21/2010

Here are a few reports everyone should review:

2011 State of Illinois Budget: http://www2.illinois.gov/budget/Pages/default.aspx - Look where the dollars are really being spent and where they're coming from. It's quite surprising. I was shocked at just how little income comes from income taxes.

List of total tax burden by state from the independent Tax Foundation: http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/452.html - In short, Illinois is about average for the U.S, but I hate relativism as justification for anything.

Illinois Teacher Salary Survey for 2007-2008: http://www.isbe.state.il.us/research/pdfs/teacher_salary_07-08.pdf

[corwin]

07:22 PM on 04/21/2010

Cornie?
Diffidntly, I mention twompoints
1) The benefits were instituted for groups voting for the 'giver'.Not payor.
And your state is broke.Where are you going to get the money?

[Mustang00]

04:53 PM on 04/21/2010

No surprise here at all....all the sympathetic unions and $80,000 a year teachers in IL are bused in to lobby for....MORE MONEY!! This is a perfect example of a "NON -grassroots event" ....without the leftist organizers this would never have happened.

Teaching in most of IL, particularly the larger metro areas, is a gold mine, financially. The pensions (which they are eligible for at 55), the full insurance benefits, summers off, the security of not being 'fired' unless they practically shoot somebody. All combine to to create a job like no other.

Don't believe it?
...when a district runs an ad for a teaching job, they will be swamped with applications - HUNDREDS....(in any economic climate, btw.) because they know its one of the most lucrative public jobs around.

[Mock38]

05:22 PM on 04/21/2010

a. My daughter has masters degree...teaches 6th thru 8th grade Spanish.

b. fourth year, makes $45,000 per year, no tenure till after that IF you are awarded it.

c. She works very hard...does lunch room duty and a weekly Spanish club.

d. She is no left winger and her union is not particularly strong.

e. There are lots of ways of improving public educataion, but a 10% cut accross the board is not one of them. I have seen Sen. Brady interviewed...wants to put special emphasis on cutting education to balance $13 billion budget gap...

[cornfield]

06:53 PM on 04/21/2010

Not many teachers in IL earn $80k per year. The median salary in 2006-07 for teachers with a doctorate and an average of 17+ years of teaching experience earned an average of $79,189, and that was only .4% of all teachers statewide. So maybe 2 out of 1000 teachers in Illinois make $80k. (see http://www.isbe.state.il.us/research/pdfs/teacher_salary_07-08.pdf) The average salary for a teacher in IL was $59,274. Considering just the actual in-school working hours, that's about $42/hr. How much do you pay your plumber or auto mechanic per hour? I'll bet it's close to $100/hr.

I will agree on a couple of points. If there were teachers marching in Springfield, I sure hope they were there using a legitimate personal day. Also, the idea of tenure is ludicrous.

I'll go one step further. The whole idea of unionized teachers is abhorrent. My daughter, who teaches in the far west suburbs, hates it too. What worker worth their salt doesn't want to be compensated based upon the quality of their work? This is the fatal flaw in unionization. They become a vehicle for getting the most pay for the least work. If you have a chance, check out this podcast of This American Life's show about the GM/Toyota plant in Fremont, California: http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/403/nummi . It's amazing stuff, especially given that it's an NPR broadcast.

[cornfield]

07:21 PM on 04/21/2010

In case I wasn't clear that on the whole, I think teachers get a very bad rap and are underpaid and underappreciated. Want better teachers? Get rid of the unions, pay for performance (not just test scores, either), and pay more. For that, I'd pay higher taxes.

[OneConservative]

04:07 PM on 04/21/2010

15,000? I heard that it was a lot less than that. More like 2,000 to maybe 3,000. Stop lying Libs.

[jedi penguin]

07:06 PM on 04/21/2010

2,000? You totally made that figure up. The 15,000 figure, however, is taken directly from the Secretary of State's office, as quoted in the Tribune:

"A spokesman for Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White estimated the rally crowd at 15,000, with more than 12,000 marching around the building. That would appear to make it the largest Capitol protest since the Equal Rights Amendment crowds a quarter-century ago."

Also, going on pictures (which I'll absolutely stipulate that one shouldn't because they can be deceptive), the crowd looks rather impressive:

http://progressillinois.com/posts/content/2010/04/21/save-our-state-rally-swarms-springfield

[cornfield]

07:37 PM on 04/21/2010

I see a few hundred people carrying mostly pre-printed signs. Hardly a grassroots effort. I smell busloads of paid union protesters. Compare that to signs carried by people protesting the Healthcare Bill in Washington D.C. last fall. Almost 100% handmade.

[Linda from Deerfield]

03:40 PM on 04/21/2010

I support the tax increase. I do not and never have worked for the state. It would be nice if Illinois could get back a little more than $0.75 for every $1.00 in federal income taxes that Illinois residents pay.

[cornfield]

07:37 PM on 04/21/2010

Why?

[Linda from Deerfield]

01:33 AM on 04/22/2010

I support increasing taxes to keep state civil servants employed primarily because the state will suffer even more from additional unemployment if we reduce the public workforce, but more importantly, service jobs and pensions keep far more money in the economy than money spent on imported goods. I have no reason to want to cut back on education, public health, law enforcement, and any of the other things to which the state contributes. Anyway, 3% is trivial, and 4% would be almost as trivial.

[swebs]

02:41 PM on 04/21/2010

I wonder if anyone there is asking why, if education is so important, is it the first thing to be cut from the budget? Why wouldn't the "optional" part of the budget include things like the free rides for seniors program and make education part of the base budget. These poor people are playing right into Quinn's laziness.

[CHICAGOSTYLE]

02:48 PM on 04/21/2010

Quinn is using kids and hospitals and troopers as pawns ,,,, and we aren't buying it

[rougebaisers]

02:33 PM on 04/21/2010

The powers that call the shots of $$$$ care little to nothing about these layoffs, care little to nothing about American children receiving an education. I know 6 teachers being let go right her in IL in June, and the reason is $$$$$$. It does not matter that they are extraordinary teachers, nor does it matter that parents love them, doesn't matter that they work their asses off to give those kids a good education. All that matters is sickening putrid $$$$$$. No child left behind? In short order it will be No child educated at all, that is unless they are from a rich family.

[naschkatze]

01:19 PM on 04/21/2010

The heartland, home of the sheeple.