HIGHLAND, Ill. (First Alert 4) – Part of Illinois’ 2025 state budget called for the elimination of the grocery tax starting next year, but one Metro East city could keep it.

The elimination of the grocery tax is set to take effect on Jan. 1. Highland, which is part of Madison County, is considering keeping the tax at the local level because the city expects to lose a lot of money if it is eliminated.

The city claims it could lose between $330,000 and $350,000, or 10% of the city’s total sales tax revenue. For this reason, savings are planned in three areas: public safety, roads and parks.

Assuming an annual loss of $330,000, the Department of Public Safety would lose $192,000, the Department of Streets would lose $86,000, and the Department of Parks would lose $53,000.

The city said it has three options to deal with this. First, pass no local tax and let the three departments make cuts. Second, pass a 1% tax through October to make sure there is no revenue loss. Or third, wait and then pass something at a later date if the impact is greater than expected.

According to a study by the Illinois Municipal League, other cities in the metro-east area such as O’Fallon, Glen Carbon and Collinsville could lose more than a million dollars in sales tax revenue.

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