House Republicans put the governor on notice that this year needs greater transparency in the process.
Pritzker had been counting on increased revenue from the graduated income tax to make up for revenue shortfalls, but voters rejected that tax change in November, thus forcing a change of plans. We re in a really tough spot, said Professor David Merriman, UIC Department of Public Administration. The only way to balance the budget is either to increase revenues or cut spending, and both of those paths are going to be very difficult to do.
Last week, Gov. Pritzker released his budget overview with a warning: We re going to have to make some painful cuts in state government in order to balance the budget.
WASHINGTON (WLS) Illinois Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth and Congressional Representative Bill Foster introduced legislation to provide tax relief for anyone who used unemployment benefits last year.
Called the Coronavirus Unemployment Benefits Tax Relief Act, the bill would waive federal income taxes on the first $10,200 of unemployment benefits collected in 2020. That relief is applicable for workers who received benefits through the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program and the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program, as well as anyone who received traditional unemployment benefits through their state unemployment insurance fund.
The CARES Act, passed in March 2020, provided an extra $600 a week in unemployment benefits through the end of July. The relief provided in the bill would cover 17 weeks of that enhanced benefit.
CHICAGO (WLS) The Illinois Department of Employment Security said it has caught or stopped nearly 1 million fraud cases since March 2020.
Now they re warning that if you receive a 1099-G form but didn t file for Illinois unemployment benefits, you may be a victim of fraud.
The 1099 G form is filled out when filing your taxes if you ve gotten money from a government agency like IDES. These forms are an indication of what income the department has had to report to the IRS, explained the Acting Director of IDES, Kristin Richards.
Richards said people could also get this form if they have been a victim of the unemployment scam, where a fraudster filed for benefits in your name. If you receive it and you didn t file for unemployment, you need to report the fraud.
CHICAGO (WLS) The Illinois attorney general s office is partnering with the FBI to create a task force on unemployment insurance benefits fraud.
Attorney General Kwame Raoul said Friday the Attorney General s Task Force on Unemployment Insurance Benefits Fraud would allow state and federal resources to be deployed on a large scale to combat unemployment insurance benefits fraud for the first time.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Raoul s office has received and investigated complaints related to unemployment insurance benefits fraud. The aim of the task force is to enhance collaboration among state and federal agencies investigating and prosecuting forms of unemployment benefits fraud, Raoul s office said.
I have never in my life filed for unemployment, Kramer said.
She said she received three more letters from IDES regarding unemployment benefits, and then another saying she owed the state $332 and if she didn t pay the state would deduct and withhold her state income tax refunds. This is crazy. I never applied for unemployment and never received benefits, she said. I ve never contacted any of these people, how can they be sending me this?
The ABC7 I-Team has been investigating fraud impacting the state s unemployment system over the last several months, and with every story shared more people come forward claiming to be victims of an unemployment scheme.