Gov. Pritzker Visits Illinois Businesses to Discuss Impact of Trump’s Tax on Working Families

CHICAGO — Today, Governor JB Pritzker visited two Chicagoland companies that do business with Canada to tour their facilities and meet with leadership about their business concerns regarding Trump’s Tax on Working Families.

“As Governor, growing the Illinois economy and protecting our State’s businesses is always a priority,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “If Trump’s Tax on Working Families remains in effect, it could ultimately force businesses and supply chains to pass higher costs onto Illinois consumers. I heard directly from Illinois businesses owners and leaders today about how this would negatively impact their businesses, and I reassured them that together we will work to reduce the effect on them and on their customers.”

International trade is an anchor of the Illinois economy, and ours is the single largest exporting state in the Midwest and fourth largest exporter in the United States. Many of Illinois’ jobs and economic successes are linked to trading partners like Canada and Mexico, our two largest trading partners.

In addition to today’s visits to small businesses, over the last few days Governor Pritzker has also spoken about Trump’s Tax on Working Families with:

DARVIN FURNITURE VISIT

Today, Gov. Pritzker stopped by Darvin Furniture, a family business founded more than 100 years ago, Darvin furniture is an industry leader and one of the top 100 furniture retailers in the country. Gov. Pritzker toured the Darvin furniture showroom with company President Will Harris and CFO Carolina Dizon and spoke with them about how the Trump tariffs would increase their costs and ultimately would raise prices for their customers. Darvin Furniture has already had to put a hold on a deal with a Canadian supplier due to the uncertainty in the market due to the threatened tariffs.

“Darvin Furniture has the best selection of American made furniture anywhere in Chicagoland. However, we have important relationships with companies like Canadel and Palliser both of whom recently invested in the grand opening of our new marketplace showroom at our store in Orland Park,” said Darvin Furniture President Will Harris. “Our customers enjoy the unique urban look, style and durability of these Canadian products. Should tariffs go into place, our customers may be negatively impacted by substantial increases in price.”

FUNKYTOWN BREWERY VISIT

Governor Pritzker also visited Funkytown Brewery in Chicago, a Black-owned brewery founded in 2021. The company is finalizing an expansion in Illinois and currently operates out of Pilot Project Brewing. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) recently signed an Economic Development for a Growing Economy (EDGE) agreement with Funkytown Brewery to support the company’s expansion.

During the stop-by, Gov. Pritzker met with Co-founder and CEO Rich Bloomfield, as well as Illinois Craft Brewers Guild Executive Director Ray Stout, where he learned that Pilot Project Brewing sources aluminum cans and barley from Canada. They expressed concern that Trump’s Tax on Working Families would likely have a detrimental impact the price of these goods and the viability of small and startup businesses like the ones they represent.

"If the price of ingredients and cans skyrockets, it will cause our suppliers to raise prices or raise the minimums that breweries must purchase. The tariffs will reduce profitability, forcing breweries and retailers to charge customers a lot more for beer, and possibly, that reduced profitability will put a large number of breweries out of business,” said Rich Bloomfield, Co-founder and CEO of Funkytown Brewery.

“The proposed tariffs would be detrimental to Illinois craft breweries and other small businesses that are already navigating a period of tremendous economic uncertainty,” said Ray Stout, Executive Director for the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild. “Since the pandemic, our members have seen record price increases across their supply chains, and levying additional tariffs to key production inputs like aluminum and barley will further test their already razor-thin margins. Ultimately, our state’s small business owners and the customers they serve will pay the price for these proposed tariffs.”

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