Why Small Business Voting Is Important in Illinois

Early voting for the Nov. 6 election began on Thursday, Sept. 27, and NFIB/IL members should have recently received their 2018 voter guide. Now it’s time to show up to the polls and make your voice heard.

Before you head to the polls, consult NFIB’s list of endorsed candidates and see how your representatives voted on these key issues from the 100th Illinois General Assembly in 2017 and 2018:

1. HB 4163 Wage History – Prohibition This bill prohibits employers from asking job applicants about their wage, salary and benefit history as a condition of being interviewed or considered for employment. It lowers employer defenses and exposes them to civil suits and damages. A “no” vote supports the NFIB position. The bill passed the House 87-24 and the Senate 31-16.
2. HB 2771 Paid Sick Leave This bill mandates employers provide 40 hours of paid sick leave to full and part-time employees annually. Employees would earn paid sick time through the hours that they work, which they could also use for family Illness. It would not take into consideration existing “paid personal time” already offered by employers. A “no” vote supports the NFIB position. The bill passed the House 66-51 and the Senate 31-17.
3. HB 5253 Small Business Regulatory Impact Analysis requires state agencies to complete an analysis when proposing new rules or amendments to rules that affect small businesses by identifying the type of industry as well as the anticipated monetary impact of the regulations. A “yes” vote supports the NFIB position. The bill passed the House 102-0 and the Senate 48-0.
4. SB 009 Income Tax Increase This the state budget bill from 2017 that increased the state income tax on individuals and businesses 32 percent. A “no” vote supports the NFIB position. The measure passed the House 72-45 and the Senate 36-18.
5. SB 009 Override vote of Governor’s Veto of SB 009, the budget bill and tax increase. A “no” vote supports the NFIB position. The House overrode the veto 71-42 and the Senate overrode the veto 36-19.
6. SB 081 Minimum Wage Increase This legislation would raise the minimum wage incrementally each year to $15 per hour by the year 2022. The bill offered a complex temporary tax credit for businesses with less than 5 workers. It also would increase the minimum wage for workers under the age of 18 to $12 per hour by 2022. A “no” vote supported the NFIB position. The bill passed the House 61-53-2 and the Senate 30-23-2. The measure was vetoed by the Governor.
7. HB 4572 Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act to redefine “employer” to include any person employing one (currently 15) or more employees within Illinois during 20 or more calendar weeks within the calendar year of or preceding the alleged violation. This creates the opportunity for law suit abuse on Illinois’ smallest employers. A “no” vote supported the NFIB position. Passed the House 64-37 and the Senate 33-13.
8. SB 867 LLC Filing Fee Reduction reduces a variety of fees associated with Limited Liability Company filings. For example, it reduced LLC organization filing fees from $500 down to $150; for amending an application from $150 down to $50; article of dissolution from $100 down to $5. A “yes” vote supported the NFIB position. The House voted 109-0-1 and the Senate voted to concur 56-0.
9. HB 2717 Third-Party Tax Audits would have allowed third-party audits of confidential business sales tax filings to find greater tax liabilities. Furthermore, it would have given these outside firms financial incentives to find new tax liabilities on companies who had already paid sales tax. A “no” vote supported the NFIB position. The House voted 42-61-3 and the Senate did not vote on this matter.
10. SB 2213 Illinois Workers’ Rights and Worker Safety Act  This bill would have forced Illinois to ignore the pro-business changes created in the federal regulatory arena that have come about during the Trump administration retroactive to January 1, 2017. It included provisions to rules relating to workers, employers and environmental regulations. A “NO” vote supported the NFIB position. The Senate voted 32-21-1, there was no House vote.
11. HR 1025 Graduate Income Tax is a resolution sponsored by House Speaker Mike Madigan that calls to change the Illinois constitution, moving from a flat income tax rate on all taxpayers to a graduated tax similar to the federal model. This is highly concerning because there was no discussion what the varying rates or income thresholds would be. This could be extremely bad for pass-through income business entities. A “NO” vote supported the NFIB position. House voted 61-52.

You already know how important small businesses are to the state’s economy, as job creators and drivers of economic output. Small business voting is just as important—tell your friends and family how the NFIB-endorsed candidates can impact your company and hundreds of other small business owners across the state!