Five-Year Tax Hike for Schools 12.75%

This is how the taxes were spread in McHenry County last year.  Source: McHenry County Conservation District.

This is how the taxes were spread in McHenry County in 2013. Source: McHenry County Conservation District.

Reader “Connecting Dots” inserted this property tax information in a comment under the article, “McSweeney Introduces Eleven Bills.”

There are comments on more than one of the bills, but with regard to McSweeney’s House Bill 178 to freeze township extensions that have a population of 100,000 or less and are located in a Tax Capped county, the following is offered as a reality check, I guess:

Here are some statistics McSeeney can use: Property tax EXTENSION INCREASES from 2008 to 2013: (This is the actual dollars NOT the rate)

  • PARK DISTRICTS —-——-—–1.60 %
  • TOWNSHIPS——————-—–4.86 %
  • MUNICIPALITIES——————5.73 %
  • LIBRARY BOARDS————-—6.45 %
  • FIRE DEPARTMENTS————6.88 %
  • TWP ROAD DISTRICTS—-—–7.00 %
  • COUNTY AND MCCD————-7.68 %
  • COMMUNITY COLLEGES——-7.91 %
  • CEMETARIES———————–9.16 %
  • SCHOOL DISTRICTS——–—-12.75 %

The winner is of course school districts – not Townships.

Statements relative to flat property taxes being collected by the County are not reflected in the property tax extensions as listed on the County website. [Extensions are the amounts taxpayers are asked to pay.  Almost all property taxes are eventually collected.]

Do note that this study was done comparing 2008 to 2013.

In the same period, property owners in the County have LOST close to ONE-THIRD of their property values.


Comments

Five-Year Tax Hike for Schools 12.75% — 2 Comments

  1. Numbers are worse in Woodstock CUSD 200.

    This is where Lakewood will insert the children of the tif, to be entirely paid for by taxpayers outside Lakewood –taxpayers who receive zero benefit from the tif money.

    tifs benefit from HIGH tax RATES. They are rewarded for rising tax rates, as they are paid tax rate multiplied by their incremental EAV each year.

    Woodstock D200 increased extension by 17% in these years….

    Woodstock District 200 taxes extended:
    2007/2008: $49,755,767
    2008/2009: $52,938,640
    2009/2010: $53,532,740
    2010/2011: $54,544,456
    2011/2012: $55,765,915
    2012/2013: $58,177,079

    As property values sharply declined…

    EAV of District by Levy Year:
    2008: $1,128,047,545
    2009: $1,117,370,497
    2010: $$1,066,023,673
    2011: $953,072,406
    2012: $843,158, 926
    (Page 19)

    So tax RATES rose sharply…

    Woodstock D200 Tax Rates:
    2008: 4.6929%
    2009: 4.7909%
    2010: 5.1166%
    2011: 5.8511%
    2012: 6.8998%
    2013: 7.74%
    2014: 8.18%
    (Numbers above show a 65% increase in tax rate from 2008 to 2013)
    (Page 20)

    As District homeowners found themselves encumbered by debt far in excess of statutory caps meant to protect them…

    2012 EAV of the school District, in 2012: $843,158,926

    2012 estimated full value of taxable property: $2,529,476,778

    2014 General Obligation Bonded Debt: $124,700,940 ( principal only, not including accrued unpaid interest debt)

    2014 other direct GO debt: $657,922

    Population estimate: 24770

    Percentage to full value of Taxable Property: 4.96% ( not considering accrued and owed interest)

    Per capita debt: $5061 ( again not considering interest accrued and owed)

    Statutory debt limit ( including existing Woodstock tif property) at 13.8% of 2012 EAV: $117,109,917

    GO Bonded debt: $124,700,940

    GO Other Debt: $657,922

    (Significance?

    D200 EAV has dropped sharply since 2012.

    Borrowing ability of D200 is tied to EAV.

    Borrowing ability is currently hampered by pesky 13.8% statutory cap.

    Tif will sharply escalate EAV for District– but falsely, since no portion of elevated EAV may be taxed by District.

    However, it can be borrowed against.)

    (D200 taxpayers currently owe 4.96% of 2012 assessed total property value ($5061 per capita) on behalf of D200 debt. …but that’s just principal.

    When you include total debt service, that is principal plus INTEREST,…do the math on figures cited below…
    (Page 18)

    Direct GO Bonded Debt (Principal Only): total $124,700,940
    (Page 15)
    Direct GO Bonded Debt (Principal and Interest): total $225,955,186

    SOURCES: Official Statement of 2014 General Obligation Bonds issued by D200. The Official Statement in turn cites sources such as McHenry County Clerk, Treasurer, or the School District itself. Page numbers below refer to pages within the Official Statement.

  2. The NWH ran a series of articles on how demographics in McHenry County are changing and they really are – people with money are leaving they are being replaced with people who count on government handouts to survive.

    Many people counted on selling their homes to downsize in their ‘golden’ years but now are faced with a loss of the value of their real estate ‘investment’.

    The loss has been so severe that only those who cannot afford to take the loss and sell are staying in the county to get their share of the social services.

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