08/01/2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 31, 2025
Mayor Brandon Johnson’s Reckless Tax Hikes Will Destroy Jobs, Drive Out Employers, and Deepen Chicago’s Decline
CHICAGO, IL — As Chicago continues to grapple with rising crime, population loss, and economic stagnation, Mayor Brandon Johnson is proposing a series of job-killing tax hikes that threaten to drive even more businesses and residents out of the city. His latest plan includes a punitive head tax on employers, an illegal corporate income tax, and a complete refusal to reduce the size of Chicago’s bloated and inefficient government.
“This is economic insanity,” said Cook County Republican Chairman Aaron Del Mar. “Mayor Johnson wants to punish employers for hiring, drive investment out of the city, and pass the buck instead of cutting back the waste in his own administration.”
The mayor’s proposal includes:
• A head tax on employers — charging businesses for each worker they employ in the city, effectively penalizing job creation and discouraging economic growth.
• A corporate income tax — a move that is almost certainly illegal under Illinois law, which prohibits cities from enacting their own corporate income taxes.
• No meaningful reform to city spending — despite a ballooning city budget, Mayor Johnson refuses to shrink the massive bureaucracy or address inefficiencies within city departments.
“Businesses already pay some of the highest taxes in the country just to operate in Chicago,” Del Mar continued. “Instead of making Chicago more competitive, Mayor Johnson is signaling that job creators are not welcome here. This will cost us jobs, investment, and future growth.”
While Chicago’s working families struggle with rising costs and deteriorating services, Johnson’s answer is more taxes, fewer jobs, and no accountability.
“Chicago needs leadership that understands how to grow the economy — not drive it into the ground,” said Chairman Del Mar. “We need safer streets, leaner government, and policies that attract opportunity. What Mayor Johnson is offering is a roadmap to economic ruin.”
CONTACT:
Aaron Del Mar
Chairman, Cook County Republican Party
Illinois Republican County Chairman's Association
Illinois Republican Party
Chicago Republican Party
Aaron Del Mar
Aaron Del Mar
Northwest Side GOP Club
Chicago Republican Ward 50
Chuck Hernandez 38th Ward Republican Committeeman
Palatine Township Republican Organization
Chicago 23rd Ward Republican Organization
Northside Chicago GOP Club
Illinois House Republican Organization
