Foster to Rauner: Lessen tax burden on Illinois residents

Rep. Bill Foster, D-Naperville, signed on to a letter from fellow Congressional Democrats calling on Gov. Bruce Rauner to alleviate the tax burden on Illinois residents by mitigating the effects of the tax cut bill, which Republicans passed last year.

The specific provision in the bill that Foster and the nine other representatives were concerned about was the cap on deducting state and local taxes, known as the SALT deduction, to $10,000 a year.

The letter states the representatives are "disappointed" Rauner didn't oppose the SALT deduction provision in the bill and said other states have already taken steps to offer solutions.

The attorney general of New Jersey recently threatened to sue the Internal Revenue Service if it tried to cut off the availability of the deduction, according to the letter.

The tax bill was passed at the end of 2017 without any Democratic votes in the House or Senate. It reorganized the individual tax brackets and cut the corporate tax rate. Rauner has consistently proposed lowering the state income tax rate, which was raised to 4.95 percent last year in the state General Assembly despite his veto.