Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce Vice President of Government Relations Carl Gutierrez recently appeared on Fox 32 Chicago’s ChicagoLIVE to discuss a proposed digital advertising tax under consideration in Illinois.
The policy is designed to generate revenue by taxing large digital advertising platforms. However, the way it is structured means those costs would likely be passed down to the businesses that rely on those platforms to reach customers.
The Chamber’s opposition is grounded in two key concerns:
Impact on Small Businesses
While positioned as a tax on large companies, the Chamber warns it will disproportionately affect small and mid-sized businesses that depend on digital marketing to drive traffic and sales. As Gutierrez explained, “the reality is that this will function as a regressive tax, be moved down to mid and small size companies, and have a disproportionate impact on them.” He added that for many businesses, “there is going to be a direct correlation between the amount of advertising on a digital platform that they do and the amount of customers they can get coming in.”
Significant Legal Risk
The Chamber also raises concerns about the proposal’s legal standing. Similar laws in other states, including Maryland, have faced ongoing legal challenges and uncertainty. Gutierrez noted that these efforts have led to prolonged litigation, warning that Illinois would face “litigation for the state of Illinois for an untold amount of time,” with no clear guarantee of new revenue.
Watch the full interview to hear more from Carl on why the Chamber is advocating against this proposal.
