After Moody's more-or-less endorsed the idea of expanding the Illinois sales tax to include more services, outgoing Cook Co. Assessor Jim Houlihan is reminding folks that he proposed doing so last year. On Fox Chicago Sunday this past weekend, Houlihan pointed out: "We [levy a sales tax] on 17 services. Many states range up to 100 services. And we could greatly expand the base and reduce the rate and produce more money for the state and local governments." Watch his full appearance here.
Houlihan's full proposal, released in April 2009, involves lowering the state sales tax from 5 percent to 3.25 percent, while expanding it to a wider range of services. He estimated at the time that such an approach would generate an additional $1 billion in revenue.
