West Cook News

Sen. Craig Wilcox (R-McHenry) recently announced that a new law will take effect next year that will require police officers to use body cameras.

Wilcox posted about the mandate on Facebook and in doing so took a jab at Democrats who he said did not provide any funding for the measure.

“For counties with populations over 500,000, the mandatory use of police body cameras takes effect on January 1, 2022.  This includes Lake County," Wilcox posted. "When passing this bill, Democrats did not provide a revenue stream for this extremely costly mandate, so our police departments will have to find a way to fund it themselves. That usually means a tax increase.”

Along with Lake County, the mandate will be valid in Cook, DuPage, Kane and Will counties, Wilcox said.

The Daily Journal reported that Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the criminal reform bill in February, which calls for all police departments in the state to employ body cams by 2025 without providing funding for the equipment or associated costs.

Illinois Policy has reported that during Pritzker's three-year tenure he has levied 24 tax and fee increases, costing Illinoisans $5.2 billion. The fees have included expanding the motor fuel tax in 2019, increasing vehicle registration fees by $50, raising taxes on cigarettes, e-cigarettes and video game consoles

The organization stated that the total could have included another $3 billion had voters in November not rejected Pritzker's progressive state income tax proposal.

“Illinoisans have watched as state taxes and fees on gas, vehicle registration, parking, marijuana, gambling, online shopping and businesses have risen rapidly under the Pritzker administration,” Illinois Policy wrote.

The state had the 10th highest tax liability in the country, with over 11% of citizens’ income going to state and local taxes, according to the Tax Foundation.