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Community College Want More State Money
A greater income tax -- 4.5 percent, rather than 3 percent -- would help higher education in Illinois, particularly at the community college level, according to people who run the two-year institutions in the state. Presidents and other college leaders told statehouse reporters the community college not only provides a less-expensive alternative to a four-year university, it also is an excellent resource for job training and retraining in areas where people are losing jobs.

The president of the Illinois Council of Community College Presidents, Bob Mees, says taxpayers with whom he has spoken don't seem to mind the prospect of paying more: "They feel an income tax increase is the fairest tax," he says. "There have been many other taxes put in place that have impacted everybody, but it’s a stopgap measure. This income tax hasn't been increased in years." Mees, who leads John A. Logan College in Carterville, says he and other community college presidents must lean on their lawmakers to pass the increase.

"The normal split should be about a third from property taxes, a third from tuition, and a third from state revenue. We're well over 50 percent on property taxes, and almost less than 12 percent for the state share," says Jeff May, a board member at Joliet Junior College and president of the Illinois Community College Trustees Association.

(Illinois Radio Network)
04 12 09 by Newsroom
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