Calls to protect Illinoisans from a progressive income tax are now coming from both sides of the aisle in Springfield. State Rep. Jerry Costello, D-Smithton, signed on as chief co-sponsor to House Resolution 891 on April 27. The resolution was filed in March by state Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills, and states that Illinois should not scrap its constitutionally protected flat income tax.
A group of Democratic politicians from Midwestern states is calling on the party to change or face a minority for years to come. "The number of Democrats holding office across the nation is at its lowest point since the 1920s and the decline has been especially severe in rural America," Illinois Rep. Cheri Bustos, a Democrat, wrote in a new report .
The Illinois General Assembly has sent legislation to Gov. Bruce Rauner that would prohibit further privatization of health care workers in state prisons. Rep. Jerry Costello is the Smithton Democrat who sponsored it.