Well, you know by now, the Tollway Board voted 7-1 to hike Toll Taxes 88%.
I heard it on WBBM right before noon.
Just the Commissioners and staff had to get the meeting over so they could go to lunch.
The Chicago Sun-Times first reported the huge Toll Tax Hike on July 29, 2011.
Because WBBM was doing national news, I switched to WGN and heard that the toll hike was 87%.
It’s really 87.4%.
I don’t know about you, but I learned to round up, not down.
Back to hear what WBBM would say after national feed, I discovered the news reader saying the tolls had almost doubled.
So, let’s recap this process.
In what the news media call the “dog days of summer,” the Illinois Tollway Authority proposes even a bigger percentage tax hike that the Democrats 67% income tax hike, passed by in a lame duck session.
Newspaper readers learn about the proposal on Friday, July 29th.
Hearings are held when lots of folks are on vacation or even, heaven forbid, enjoying the great outdoors.
And, less that 30 days later, a forever increase in Toll Taxes is imposed by an appointed board.
If there were sounds of protest from suburban Republican legislators, whose pockets will be picked every weekday, I didn’t notice them.
Who are these appointed board members? What are their pay and benefits? What are they pay and benefits of the employees? I didn’t hear any of that discussion about the toll hike. Were the employees and board members willing to reduce their pay and benefits in exchange for a toll increase?
And it’s not really a commuting choice for some. If you have a long commute, there may not be a reasonable alternative.
Time to get a bill introduced to require that Tollway commissioners be elected, not appointed. Oops, forgot — those are seats are political plums handed out by county GOP chairs, so it’ll never happen.
And I was taught that you round down if it’s less than .5 and round up if it’s .5 or more. Not that it matters when the increase is that huge. So basically, they just brought iPass users almost up to the same rate non-users have been paying all along. How convenient.
Yawn… was there any doubt????
I mean what would else would you expect from a man who practically tripled the driver’s license fees, and radically raised the licence plates stickers.
Sounds like typical Democrat controlled Illinois to me.
And they wonder why Illinois is in the trouble its in, why the economy is horrible (to be mild), and why it’s blunders capture national attention…. before they re-elect these people!!!
I agree Rob. Where is the moral outrage at the further subjugation of the working people? Back where we all left our optimism about the future. Today cynicism rules the day in Illinois as we realize there is simply no way to stop the out of control train controlled by blind, deaf and dumb government officials. Was there any doubt they would raise the taxes on us? No. Is there any doubt Illinois is looking for any way possible to raise revenue for itself with no regard for the working people? No. Will these government officials ever realize they don’t create money or jobs, they can only create the environment these may be grown in? No.
I pray The People wake up, raise up and save themselves from the unfillable maw of government by throwing out anyone responsible for raising any taxes on them. We can do it. We still have the ability and the power if we have the will to use them. Will we?… We shall see soon….