Illinois Governor Plans to Slash Taxes on Groceries Across the State

It's not often we get news that the Illinois government is CUTTING taxes, but it reportedly will happen in about a year and a half.

According to a Supermarket News report, a $53 Billion budget was approved by the Illinois State Senate this past weekend and one tax that will be cut is the state's 1 percent grocery tax.

READ MORE: Where Are All The Fireflies in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa?

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker proposed eliminating the grocery tax and said, "even if it only puts a few hundred bucks back in families' pockets, it's the right thing to do."

Only 13 U.S. States have a tax on their groceries with Illinois having the lowest rate at 1 percent and Mississippi being the highest with a 7 percent grocery tax.

Ending the grocery tax will be good for working families in Illinois according to Governor Pritzker, but cities and villages that receive the tax revenue around the state are understandably upset because of how much they will potentially lose.

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Once the state's tax on groceries ends on January 1, 2026, Chicago will lose $60 to 80 million, while Rockford's loss will be between $7 and 8 million. Even communities like Joliet and Schaumburg will lose around $3 million in tax revenue but don't think the tax will completely go away for good.

One of the reasons Illinois is delaying the end of the grocery tax is to give cities and villages time to set up their local taxes on groceries, which are not allowed to be higher than the original 1 percent tax from the state.

Oklahoma also ended its grocery tax recently which was at 4.5 percent, according to Supermarket News.