For Immediate Release: July 23, 2025

Media Contacts: H Kapp-Klote, 785-331-9039, [email protected]

In Chicago, some CEOs make over 1,000x their median worker. A new proposal from the Institute for the Public Good says it's time to tax that difference to solve Chicago's budget crisis.

A new report from the Institute for the Public Good proposes a bold solution to Chicago’s deepening fiscal crisis: a Corporate Income Inequality Tax targeting corporations that spend millions on high executive pay. 

The report shows how a corporate excise tax on the privilege of doing business in Chicago measured by 5% of the cost of payroll for employees that earn more than $200,000 on corporations with more than $8 million in annual payroll can generate more than $1.5 billion in new revenue for the city. It would also create a Small Business Growth Fund—$50-$100 million annually in grants and revolving loans, supporting the very businesses that have anchored our neighborhoods for generations but have struggled to compete against deep-pocketed corporations and big-box chains.

At a time when Chicago ranks fourth in the U.S. for number of millionaires, yet one in five residents experiences food insecurity, the city faces a choice: continue down a path of austerity or hold high-profit corporations accountable and fund a future rooted in equity, not cutbacks.

Corporations have been benefiting from the largest tax cut in U.S. history under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and studies have revealed that benefits flowed only to the very top—49% to firm owners, 11% to executives, and 40% to high-income workers (those in the top 10% within their firms). No benefits were seen by low-paid workers.  

For decades, Chicago has let big corporations off the hook while slashing public services. Chicago can’t afford to leave money on the table for city services that keep our communities safe, healthy, and livable. This report shows how taxing corporations with extreme executive compensation could support everyone in Chicago when it comes to housing, safety, and care.

The proposal mirrors Seattle’s JumpStart Tax, which has exceeded revenue expectations since 2020—generating over $1.2 billion in four years and helping fund affordable housing, childcare, and green infrastructure.

A similar Corporate Income Inequality Tax in Chicago could help fill Chicago’s historic $1.2 billion budget shortfall driven by past mismanagement, federal cuts, and deepening economic inequality.

“Corporations can afford to contribute more—especially those with CEOs making 1,000 times what their workers make.” said Julie Dworkin, co-director at IPG.“We know what works. We just need the will to do it.” 

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Institute for the Public Good is a non-partisan policy institute that strengthens the public good by releasing research and supporting legislative efforts that advance racial equity and economic justice. We define a public good as a resource, service, or benefit that is accessible to everyone in society, and is supported through public funding and operation. Expansion of the public good is necessary in creating a society that supports the basic needs of everyone within it, while creating and sustaining robust services that work effectively for all of us.