Trustees To Debate Extending Oswego Grocery Tax

OSWEGO, IL — Oswego trustees will discuss during Tuesday night's Committee of the Whole meeting whether to implement a local grocery tax in the new year.

The village is considering adopting its own 1 percent grocery tax to maintain its revenue on the heels of Illinois's grocery tax being eliminated on Jan. 1, 2026.

"In his 2025 budget, Governor [JB] Pritzker permanently eliminated the tax without offering local governments any compensating revenue stream," Financial Director Andrea Lamberg wrote in a report to trustees.

Multiple neighboring communities have since passed the tax, including Aurora, Batavia, Montgomery, Naperville, North Aurora, Plainfield, Plano, Sugar Grove and Yorkville.

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"It is estimated that ... approximately 50% of groceries sold in Oswego are for non-residents," Lamberg wrote. "This keeps the pressure off homeowners and renters and provides at a minimum, $500,000 per year of non-resident grocery tax revenue."

The village estimates it collected about $914,000 and $967,000 in grocery tax revenue in 2023 and 2024, respectively. The average family of four spends about $1,372 per month on groceries, Lamberg said, resulting in about $13.72 collected in grocery taxes.

"It is a revenue source that can help Oswego plan ahead and stay resilient, especially in uncertain times," she wrote in the report.

Trustees will debate whether the revenue would remain in the general fund or if it should be directed to the water and sewer fund or used to provide an annual $50 credit to all residential utility accounts, according to village documents.

Municipalities that want to implement a local grocery tax are required to adopt an ordinance before Oct. 1.