Jack Franks turns out to have been blowing smoke with his tale about property tax relief

A press release from State Rep. Kent Gaffney reveals that State Rep. Jack Franks’ bill to rein in the taxeaters when down in flames today in the Illinois House.

So much for my predictive ability from 200 miles away.

I figured there were so many Democrats in so much trouble because of voting to hike the state income tax by 67% that they would vote for Franks’ bill to limit the amount tax districts could get in declining real estate markets to what they received the year before.

As you can see from the roll call below, it didn’t happen:

House Bill 3793 roll call on Jack Franks' Tax Cap limitation bill.

I think you would be safe in assuming that those not voting for Franks’ bill represent the wishes of tax districts more than they do of taxpayers. Since many are creatures of local government, including school boards and administration, their votes may be easily explainable.

Rep. Gaffney’s press release follows:

Gaffney votes for property tax relief for homeowners
HB 3793 fails in Illinois House on vote of 34-73-5

Springfield, IL… In response to rising property tax bills in the collar counties, State Representative Kent Gaffney (R-Lake Barrington) voted today for House Bill 3793, legislation that would offer relief to hard-pressed homeowners who are facing declining home values.

Kent Gaffney

“Since taking office, I have received many phone calls from homeowners upset that their property tax bills increased despite the fact that their home values decreased,” said Gaffney.

“Some of my constituents had their property tax bills go up as much as 15 or 20%. To me, it is completely unfair for people to be paying higher property taxes when their property values are declining.”

The Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL) limits local taxing bodies’ property tax extensions to the lesser of 5% or the rate of inflation. However, in 2008 when the housing market crashed and assessments went down, taxing bodies began increasing their levies at the rate of inflation, increasing most homeowners’ overall tax bill. HB 3793 would prohibit taxing bodies from increasing their levies in years that property assessments decrease.

House Bill 3793 failed in the Illinois House on a vote of 34-73-5. Representative Gaffney, a cosponsor of HB 3793, was disappointed in the bill’s failure.

“This was a common sense measure to provide real property tax relief to Illinois homeowners,” said Gaffney. “With the housing market struggling and many homeowners seeing their largest asset decline in value, we need to update Illinois’ tax code to reflect economic reality. I am disappointed in today’s vote but I will continue to push for property tax relief for our homeowners.”