SPRINGFIELD – Illinois residents are on track to receive much-needed financial relief, thanks to the efforts of State Senator Celina Villanueva, who passed a responsible revenue package Monday that bolsters new revenue sources without placing taxes on everyday people.
“All year long, my colleagues and I were told we had to ‘cut’ our way out of budget challenges, but we recognize that bulldozing the essential resources and services Illinois’ working families rely on is not the way to meet the ever changing demands of our economy,” said Villanueva (D-Chicago). “We know the wealth to fully fund programs in our communities exists; it’s just being hoarded. This revenue package steps up to the moment to ensure Illinois has progressive revenue policies centered around fairness and stability for all residents.”
Senate Bill 3019 – the revenue package – would implement a stream of equitable revenue enhancements that uplift working families across Illinois, including making corporations pay their fair share and reinstating the back-to-school tax holiday.
Among the initiatives included in the package is a new social media fee that is expected to generate $200 million for K-12 public education and for the state to use as a safety net in light of federal funding decisions. The proposal would implement a fee on social media platforms based on their average number of monthly users located in Illinois, materializing as a three-tier structure that would cap fees at $165,000 annually plus $0.50 per month per user for platforms with over one million users. To protect Illinois users, platforms would not be allowed to charge residents higher prices, reduce features or otherwise treat them differently in order to recover costs.
To hold the booming advertising empire accountable and supplement funding for education, health care and other essential services, the package would also create the Targeted Advertising Services Tax Act. It would impose a 10% tax on targeted advertising revenue that exceeds $1 million in a 12-month period – affecting only the largest corporations that profit off selling consumers’ personal data to digital advertisers.
Recognizing families’ needs for assistance affording everyday necessities, SB 3019 will also reinstate the back-to-school tax holiday, which temporarily reduces the Illinois sales tax rate on certain school-related purchases from 6.25% to 1.25%. Implementing the tax holiday for a third time would ensure families across the state could purchase much-needed items, like clothing, shoes and school supplies before the 2026-27 academic year.
“At a time when so many of our residents are struggling to make ends meet, are going without basic necessities like groceries and medication, and are having hard conversations every day, we have an obligation to implement smart revenue solutions that reduce wealth inequity in our state and support funding for the resources and services Illinoisans rely on to survive,” added Villanueva.
Senate Bill 3019 passed the Senate Monday and heads to the governor for further consideration.
