Before Gov. Bruce Rauner delivered his Fiscal Year 2019 budget address Wednesday, House hopeful Katie Miller said she wanted to hear a proposal from Rauner that would balance the state budget without additional tax increases.
“Raising taxes has not worked before and Illinois residents are already taxed more than the residents of most other states,” Miller, who is running in the GOP primary in the 53rd House District, told the North Cook News. “That is the type of plan I am going to Springfield to champion.”
Miller, who is vying for the seat being vacated by Rep. David Harris (R-Arlington Heights), said a true balanced budget would include a reduction in spending and Medicaid and pension reform.
“We have not had a true balanced budget in Illinois since 2001,” Miller said.
Seeking the 53rd District seat, which covers Prospect Heights and Mt. Prospect, Miller said the specific policy goal needed to balance the budget and dig Illinois out of debt is spending control.
“We can’t expect people to spend more in taxes,” Miller said. “We are already overtaxed in Illinois, and taxes are driving families to move out of Illinois.”
She said while lawmakers need to control spending, they also need to prioritize the money they spend by making it available to the disabled, hospitals, schools and fixing state infrastructures.
If elected, Miller said she would be the change she wants to see.
“I would be an advocate for taxpayers in Illinois,” Miller said. “I think too many politicians think of themselves and special interest and not the everyday people in the state.”
Whether Rauner’s budget proposal will work remains to be seen, but until then Miller could not stress enough the need for finance control.
“The only way we can decrease taxes is by controlling spending,” Miller said. “We need to budget and stay within the budget and spend within our means the same way families and businesses control their budgets.”
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