Rep. Sosnowski statement on Governor’s State of the State Address

State Representative Joe Sosnowski (R-Rockford) issued the following statement in response to Governor JB Pritzker's State of the State Address delivered to a joint session of the Illinois General Assembly today:

"The Governor's self-congratulatory speech touting his success stands in stark contrast to the nonpartisan Moody's Analytics report that highlights the true condition of Illinois' financial health under JB Pritzker - and it isn't good.

Illinois has the highest combined taxes and fees of any state in the nation, persistent outmigration and a shrinking tax base. During JB Pritzker's first seven years as Governor, there have been 55 tax and fee increases costing taxpayers over $7 Billion a year. The Pritzker Administration has also been characterized by gross financial mismanagement, specifically the State Auditor General's finding of $5.2 Billion in unemployment insurance fraud, and $2.5 Billion spent on non-citizen health care.

Illinois' number one priority right now should be affordability. We need to deliver property tax relief for families and seniors, reduce energy costs by repealing the disastrous new law Pritzker signed in January that will cost ratepayers upwards of $7 billion for the purpose of installing battery energy storage facilities (SB 25), and stopping the automatic annual increase in motor fuel taxes on gasoline and diesel. We cannot afford more of the same failed policies Governor Pritzker offered again today."

Representative Sosnowski serves the 69^th District which includes portions of Winnebago, Boone, and McHenry Counties.