The state of Illinois will stop imposing a 1% sales tax on groceries on Jan. 1, 2026, but most Metro East residents will continue to pay it.
Belleville City Council and Swansea Village Board approved ordinances on Monday night to implement their own 1% local grocery taxes to replace the state tax. Many other Metro East municipalities have taken the same action or plan to do so in the near future.
Belleville Mayor Jenny Gain Meyer said the city would lose about $1 million in annual revenue without a grocery tax, forcing officials to find replacement funds or cut city services.
“This isn’t a new tax,” she said. “If you’re going shopping right now, you’re paying this tax. It’s just going to continue.”
Illinois is one of 13 states that impose sales taxes on groceries. For 35 years, all of that revenue in Illinois has been distributed to municipalities, causing many to rely on it to make ends meet.
In May, the Illinois General Assembly approved Gov. JB Pritzker’s fiscal year 2025 budget bill, which repealed the state grocery tax. He and other political leaders described it as “regressive” because of its disproportionate impact on low-income residents.
“Even with inflation cooling off, every dollar counts, so I’m proud we’re doing what we can to make trips to the grocery store a little easier,” Pritzker said in a statement when he signed the bill in August.
“It’s one more important part of lifting the burden on Illinois families.”
The BND polled 35 Metro East municipalities about local grocery taxes this week. Sixteen have approved ordinances to implement them, two are in the approval process, five decided not to approve them, eight are still in discussions and four didn’t respond to inquiries.
Tax repeal called ‘political grandstanding’
Kent Randle, alderman for Belleville’s Ward 3, said state officials knew that municipalities couldn’t withstand a sudden loss of revenue from the state grocery tax, and that’s why they provided a way for them to recoup it.
The budget bill included a provision allowing municipalities to implement their own local grocery taxes without voter approval.
“I think (the repeal) was political grandstanding on the part of the governor, knowing full well that the state doesn’t get the grocery tax money,” Randle said. “It just administered it and turned it back over to the municipalities, and the state’s going to keep doing that.”
Other Metro East leaders expressed similar views.
Lebanon City Clerk Paul Grob said the state is “trying to look good” at the expense of municipalities. Lebanon City Council approved an ordinance on June 9 to implement a local grocery tax.
Resident Rick Brown spoke against Belleville’s ordinance during a public-participation period at the City Council meeting on Monday night. He argued that elimination of the grocery tax could help offset high property taxes.
Before the meeting, Brown called it “amazing” for him to agree with the governor on anything.
“I’ve got no love for Pritzker, but he’s right,” Brown said. “This is a regressive tax. These are groceries. It’s a commodity that you have to have. It’s like medicine. This is crap. This shows how much trouble the city is in.”
Brad Coles, executive director for the Illinois Municipal League, which supports and advocates for cities, towns and villages, didn’t respond to a request for comment on grocery taxes.
The organization would have preferred to see the state tax left in place but embraced the local-tax alternative, according to a summary of the issue on its website.
“The Illinois Municipal League played an integral role in securing the authority for both home rule and non-home rule municipalities to implement by ordinance a 1% locally imposed grocery sales tax (without need for referendum approval),” the summary states.
O’Fallon to vote on tax next month
O’Fallon faces a situation similar to the one in Belleville. Officials estimate that the city would lose $1.2 million in annual revenue without a sales tax on groceries bought at Walmart, Schnucks, Aldi and Sam’s Club.
O’Fallon City Council will do a first reading on July 7 of an ordinance to implement a local tax and vote on it July 21, according to City Administrator Walter Denton, who is recommending approval.
“(The $1.2 million) goes into our general fund, which pays for our police department and streets,” he said. “I don’t know where we would find that money if we weren’t able to retain the grocery tax.”
On Aug. 20, Smithton became the first Metro East municipality to approve an ordinance to implement a local grocery tax among those reached by the BND. That was followed by Fairview Heights on Oct. 1, Highland on Oct. 21, Red Bud on Nov. 4 and New Athens on Jan. 6.
Fairview Heights Mayor Mark Kupsky said his city would lose between $1.3 million and $1.5 million in annual revenue without the tax.
“That’s a lot of money for a city to lose in its budget, especially in Fairview Heights, where we don’t have a property tax,” he said. “That money is used to provide services for our residents.”
Most other municipalities waited until after the April 1 consolidated election to consider ordinances to implement local grocery taxes.
Municipalities that have approved ordinances this spring, beyond those already mentioned, include Alton, Caseyville, Edwardsville, Freeburg, Glen Carbon, Maryville, Shiloh and Wood River. Several others plan to discuss them and possibly vote later this month or in July.
Troy and Granite City have bucked the Metro East trend by deciding not to implement local grocery taxes.
City Administrator Jay Keeven said Troy has one small grocery store, stands to lose only about $108,000 in annual revenue and is likely to make up for it due to community growth.
“(Aldermen) kind of felt like it was a regressive tax,” he said. “Everybody at every level has to buy groceries.”
Jessie Curran, finance director for Granite City, said Mayor Mike Parkinson rejected the idea of implementing a local grocery tax because “he wants to pass the savings onto residents.”
The villages of Roxana, St. Jacob and Hartford also don’t plan to implement grocery taxes, but it’s because they have no food stores, according to officials.
Some municipalities still deciding
Metro East municipalities still considering whether to draw up ordinances to implement local sales taxes on groceries include Bethalto, Columbia, Dupo, East Alton, Madison, Mascoutah, Millstadt and Waterloo. Collinsville City Council plans to vote in July.
Bethalto officials haven’t been able to get a solid figure on how much it would lose without the tax, according to Mayor Gary Bost. If it’s not too much, and the village could cut spending or increase revenue to cover costs, he’d prefer not to take action “just because we can.”
East Alton Treasurer Josh Curren said village officials are weighing whether it’s worth it to approve an ordinance to collect a small amount of sales tax on groceries sold at quick shops.
“We don’t have a grocery store like other towns do,” he said.
Here’s where things stand on local grocery taxes in 35 Metro East municipalities polled by the BND this week:
Madison County
- Alton: City Council approved ordinance on June 11.
- Bethalto: Village officials still in discussion.
- East Alton: Village officials plan to discuss this summer.
- Edwardsville: City Council approved ordinance on May 20.
- Glen Carbon: Village Board approved ordinance on May 27.
- Granite City: Mayor decided not to propose local grocery tax.
- Hartford: Officials won’t seek grocery tax due to no food stores in village.
- Highland: City Council approved ordinance on Oct. 21.
- Madison: City officials still in discussion.
- Maryville: Village Board approved ordinance on May 7.
- Pontoon Beach: Village officials didn’t respond to requests for information.
- Roxana: Officials won’t seek grocery tax due to no food stores in village.
- St. Jacob: Officials won’t seek grocery tax do to no food stores in village.
- Troy: City Council decided not to implement local grocery tax.
- Wood River: City Council approved ordinance on May 19.
Monroe County
- Waterloo: City Council to discuss possible ordinance in July.
Randolph County
- Red Bud: City Council approved ordinance on Nov. 4.
St. Clair County
- Belleville: City Council approved ordinance on June 16.
- Cahokia Heights: City officials didn’t respond to requests for information.
- Caseyville: Village Board approved ordinance on June 4.
- Collinsville: Ordinance being prepared for City Council vote in July.
- Columbia: City officials still in discussion.
- Dupo: Village officials still in discussion.
- East St. Louis: City officials didn’t respond to requests for information.
- Fairview Heights: City Council approved ordinance on Oct. 1.
- Freeburg: Village Board approved ordinance on May 5.
- Lebanon: City Council approved ordinance on June 9.
- Mascoutah: Discussion expected at City Council meetings in July.
- Millstadt: Discussion planned for Village Board meeting on June 23.
- New Athens: Village Board approved ordinance on Jan. 6.
- O’Fallon: City Council to vote on ordinance July 21.
- Shiloh: Village Board approved ordinance on May 5.
- Smithton: Village Board approved ordinance on Aug. 20.
- Swansea: Village Board approved ordinance on June 16.
- Washington Park: Village officials didn’t respond to requests for information.
