The Civic Federation supports the DuPage County FY2011 proposed operating budget of $459.4 million. The County is reducing operating expenditures for the second year in a row while pledging to maintain the existing level of service and keep the property tax levy at roughly the same level as last year. Going forward the County needs to plan for a continued decline in economically sensitive revenues and projected increases in personnel expenses. In order to properly plan for the uncertain…
The purpose of the Cook County Modernization Report is to provide leaders of the County with ideas for reshaping and refining County government that will improve service delivery to residents while reducing wasteful spending and decreasing reliance on taxpayer funds. The Modernization Project provides a roadmap for creating a government that is more efficient, less costly and more accountable. The report contains actionable recommendations that can be implemented in the first 100 days after the…
A recent poll of Illinois voters might help explain why elected officials have been reluctant to make difficult decisions to solve the State of Illinois’ fiscal crisis. The poll, by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, asked registered voters to choose among three different proposals for closing the State’s roughly $13 billion deficit in FY2011. More than half of the respondents—57.0%—said the State takes in plenty of money and can fix the problem…
Tax increment financing (TIF) districts do not freeze property tax revenue available to other taxing districts in Cook County; the principal effect of TIF is to raise tax rates higher than they otherwise would have been.[1] Any additional effects of TIF districts depend on whether or not the redevelopment would have occurred even if the TIFs had not been created. Opponents of TIF often claim that TIF diverts millions of dollars from Cook County school districts and other taxing districts.…
Cook County second installment property tax bills are expected to come out late this year and might not be due until December 22. Will your bill be higher or lower than last year? It is very difficult to predict whether the tax bill for an individual parcel will increase or decrease in the future due to the complex interactions of many moving parts in the Cook County property tax system. The Civic Federation published a report last week describing how property tax rates are calculated…
Explains Effect of TIF on Local Governments in Cook County (CHICAGO) The Civic Federation released today the third in a series of four primers that explain how the property tax system in Cook County works—and doesn’t work. “Property Tax Extension Process” explains in plain-English how Cook County determines the amount of revenue local governments may collect. The report also describes the effect of Tax Increment Financing districts on local government revenue. The first two property tax primers…
The purpose of this report is to describe how property taxes are extended in Cook County, Illinois. It defines tax extension, explains the mechanics of calculating rate limits and tax caps, and describes the effects of Tax Increment Financing districts on the tax revenues of local governments. It also includes trend data on Equalized Assessed Value, tax rates, tax extensions, and TIF revenue. Finally, the report explains the difficulty of predicting changes to individual tax bills. Read the…
This article discusses a delay in the mailing of Cook County property tax bills to around November 22, a month later than 2009’s mailing. The Civic Federation says that because of the delay, local governments may have to borrow money for operating costs – a potentially costly move.
This article discusses the Civic Federation’s “Effective Property Tax Rates 1999-2008: Selected Municipalities in Northeastern Illinois” report. The article focuses on the report’s finding that commercial and industrial property tax rates have risen by 25% to 30% between 2006 and 2008.
This blog post discusses findings in the Civic Federation’s “Effective Property Tax Rates 1999-2008: Selected Municipalities in Northeastern Illinois” report. The Civic Federation says that in the past decade most communities in Chicagoland have experienced declining effective property tax rates.
