Andrew Cottingham for Illinois State Representative

Income Tax: Increase the state income tax standard deduction to $70k – $100k, and continue to increase it over time. This effectively is a bottom-up income tax cut for poor, working, and middle class residents here in Illinois. (Residents can use their own money to cover expenses, save, invest, and to pay off debt!)

• • No Tax on Unemployment Benefits: My plan, in accordance with cutting the state income tax bottom up, is to stop taxing unemployment benefits in the State of Illinois.
  • No Tax on Tips: In accordance with cutting the state income tax bottom up, I will also eliminate the income tax on all cash/electronic tips.
  • No Tax on Overtime: In accordance with cutting the state income tax bottom up, I will also eliminate the income tax on all overtime pay. We should be rewarding our workforce for their extra work, not punishing them with additional taxation! I believe we will see an increase in productivity, an increase in employee satisfaction/fulfilment, and a decrease in poverty within our workforce.

Debt First Policy: Revenue collected from a person’s taxable income will first be directly applied to the principal of their outstanding debt with the state government until all debts are paid in full. This policy would be applied until the bottom-up income tax cut is implemented, and if a person’s income exceeds the raised standard deduction.

Sales Tax: My plan is to eliminate the state sales tax on necessities first. Sales taxes directly impact the poor, working, and middle class the most here in Illinois. Eliminating the 1% grocery tax, which went into effect January 1st, 2026, is a step in the right direction; however, it is not enough. What are necessities? To me, necessities include food, medicine, health & hygiene products, infant products, etc.

• • Destination Sales Tax: I will oppose and fight to repeal the destination sales tax.
  • Fair Tax: I will oppose and fight against any proposal to implement a “Fair Tax” in Illinois.

Property Tax: Cut property taxes bottom-up for poor, working, and middle class residents here in Illinois.

Freeze State Spending: Illinois has a spending problem, not a revenue problem. The best path towards a well-balanced budget is not made through increased taxation (raising current taxes or creating new taxes) or by more regulation; instead, it will be made not only by spending ONLY what we have (not a dollar more), but also by reducing how much we spend. That is why I believe freezing state spending will be the first significant step in reversing decades of reckless spending and in lifting the current tax burden off of our residents.

Ending Corporate Welfare: Stop subsidizing, bailing out, and cutting taxes top-down for the benefit of corporations, which always come at the expense of small businesses and taxpayers.

Illinois Department of Government Efficiency (IL D.O.G.E.): IL D.O.G.E. will streamline in-state processes to make the state government and its services more efficient, effective, accessible, and affordable for our residents. Doing so will also allow us to both lower operating costs and reduce state spending as well.

• • IL D.O.G.E. will investigate and expose fraudulent, wasteful, and excessive spending in preparation for top-down spending cuts.
  • IL D.O.G.E. will be essential in our efforts to consolidate current welfare programs, and spending within such programs, in preparation for the implementation of the Negative Income Tax Initiative (see below for further details).
  • IL D.O.G.E. will also be an essential ally as we overhaul our election system and fight to strengthen election integrity here in the State of Illinois.

Reduce Ballot Access: Reduce ballot access requirements for independent and third-party candidates for local, state, and federal offices. As of right now, the State of Illinois makes it nearly impossible to run for office unless you are a Democrat or Republican, which is neither democratic, nor a principle of our republic. Every level of office should require the same number of signatures regardless of political party affiliation. (If independents have to collect 2,000+ signatures for State Representative, so should Democrats and Republicans.)

Extend Petition Gathering Period: Extend the petition window not only for independent and third-party candidates, but also for established party candidates as well.

(A) For the purpose of qualifying for placement on the ballot for any public office, independent, third-party, and established-party candidates shall be entitled to begin circulating nomination petitions on the first Wednesday of the calendar year immediately preceding the election year.

(B) The deadline for submission of such nomination petitions by independent and third-party candidates to the appropriate election authority shall be the third Monday of July in the year of the election in which the office is being sought. The deadline for submission of such nomination petitions by established party candidates to the appropriate election authority shall be filed no more than 141 days and not less than 134 days prior to the date of the primary.

(C) Nomination petitions submitted after the deadline shall be deemed invalid and shall not be considered for ballot placement.

Protect Voters: Amend the Illinois State Constitution to include political affiliation and voting history as protected classes from discrimination. No one in the State of Illinois should be discriminated against for who they vote for or for which political party/identity they affiliate with.

Abolish the Secret Ballot: Next to California and New York, Illinois has some of the worst election integrity in the nation, which is why I support abolishing the secret ballot in the State of Illinois. By abolishing the secret ballot, in addition to protecting voters as mentioned in my Protect Voters policy, not only can we allow thorough audits of our elections to take place, but we can also allow voters to audit their own voting history. Lastly, I believe that every voter should receive a printed receipt upon the submission of their ballot on Election Day.

Write-In Ballots: Change the current format of our ballots from “multiple choice” to write-in ballots, which is how our ballots used to be formatted. This policy would also coincide with ballot access reform. Such a policy would lower barriers of entry for local, state, and federal candidates; additionally, implementing such policy would encourage fair competition amongst all parties and candidates.

Proportional Representation (Statewide): Return the State of Illinois to a proportional representation system for our state legislature. I believe doing so will promote growth in representation throughout the state both geographically and ideologically. Doing so will also give independent and third-party candidates greater representation, which will also make our elections more competitive.

Congressional District Method (Electoral College): Amend the Illinois State Constitution to shift the State of Illinois away from using the winner-takes-all system; instead, Illinois would utilize the congressional district method that the states of Nebraska and Maine use. I believe doing so will make Illinois far more competitive in Presidential Elections; otherwise, we will continue to be a state that is vastly overlooked.

Negative Income Tax Initiative (NIT): Establish a new poverty line after cutting taxes bottom-up.

• • Those who fall under the newly established poverty line or are qualified to collect Social Security, disability, or unemployment benefits will be eligible to apply for the Negative Income Tax Initiative.

• • The Negative Income Tax Initiative would aim to consolidate current welfare programs as a means to provide more efficient, effective, and quality service while also reducing government spending.

• • The Negative Income Tax Initiative gives citizens the opportunity to choose between receiving a direct cash payment or “Necessity Vouchers” in exchange at a higher ratio for the cash value of their NIT.

• • While Necessity Vouchers do limit what one can purchase, they also provide the recipient with greater purchasing power than the direct cash payment.
• • While the direct cash payment might not have as much purchasing power as the Necessity Vouchers, it can be spent on any needs that are not supported by the vouchers.

Necessity Vouchers can be exchanged for goods and services such as:

• • Groceries
  • Medicine & Vitamins
  • Health & Hygiene Products
  • Healthcare Services
  • Clothing
  • Infant Products
  • Childcare
  • Education (Including Student Loans*)
  • Housing
  • Transportation

• I will ensure that we improve the quality of our air, water, and soil.
• I support efforts to rewild our public lands by returning native plants and animals, and by removing invasive plants and animals as well.
• I will protect threatened and endangered species. (Plants, Animals, and Fungi)
• I support regenerative agriculture practices, and will aim to make such practices more accessible and affordable for our farmers.
• I support pollinator conscious and friendly agriculture practices.
• I support community gardens.
• I support turning Cahokia Mounds into a National Park.

Step 1: Legalize the research and therapeutic use of psilocybin, MDMA, DMT, peyote/mescaline, ayahuasca, and LSD.
(Must be 21-years old to receive treatment)

Step 2: Decriminalize and legalize the possession, cultivation, and distribution of medicinal psilocybin.
(Must be 21-years old)

Step 3: Legalize the possession, cultivation, and distribution of psilocybin mushrooms and products containing psilocybin.
(Must be 21-years old)

Step 4: Apply a (1%) sales tax to the sale of medicinal psilocybin. Apply a (7%) medicinal cultivation tax to the sale of medicinal psilocybin. Apply a (10%) sales tax to the sale of psilocybin mushrooms/products containing psilocybin.

Step 5: Tax revenue from sales tax will be allocated towards current state mental health programs.

Step 6: Support access to therapeutic treatments utilizing psychedelics for police officers, firefighters, veterans, and other first responders suffering from trauma, PTSD, addiction, etc.

Step 7: Support clinics that provide therapeutic treatments utilizing psychedelics for people suffering from trauma, abuse, addiction, PTSD, etc.

Step 8: Support therapeutic treatments utilizing psychedelics as an option for the rehabilitation of the incarcerated.