The Illinois Senate approved Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s progressive tax income plan on Wednesday.

With a 40-19 vote, the proposed plan passed the three-fifths majority in the Democrat-controlled Senate required to approve the proposed amendment. The plan is now off to the Illinois House, which is also majority-Democrat, where it will require the same approval margin. If passed in the House, Illinois voters will be allowed to vote on the proposed amendment on the November 2020 ballot.

The proposed constitutional amendment would replace the state’s flat income tax with a progressive tax, where higher earners would pay higher rates. Tax rates would begin at 4.75 percent and increase until 7.95 percent for taxpayers making more than $1 million. The plan promises that 97 percent of taxpayers would not pay more than they currently do, and only taxpayers earning more than $250,000 would face higher tax rates. The new tax structure would generate $3.4 billion in revenue for the state, according to the March proposed plan.

The governor’s proposed tax plan is one of the main proponents of his campaign goal to fix the state’s budget deficit. The state currently faces a $133.5 billion unfunded pension liability and a lack of funding for state services.

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