Property Tax Hike Becoming County Board Top Issue – Part 3

The new 2012 map for the McHenry County Board. Click to enlarge.

Saturday night’s crowd of candidates also gave opening statements.

And, as on Friday, some targeted like a laser beam on the tax hike issue. (See also Part 1 and Part 2.)

But before beginning, let me remind you of those incumbents who voted to increase the tax levy so much that the tax take from property owners will be as high as allowed by state law.

Those running for re-election are in boldface type.

  • Robert Bless
  • Scott Breeden
  • Sue Draftcorn (a switch)
  • Mary Donner
  • Jim Heisler
  • Tina Hill (a switch)
  • John Jung
  • Donna Kurtz
  • Mary McCann
  • Pete Merkel
  • Anna May Miller (a switch)
  • Marc Munaretto
  • Kathy Bergan Schmidt
  • Ken Koehler

Diane Evertsen

Michael Stanard, running for a spot on the GOP primary ballot drew the first slot to speak and said, “I would [have]voted against an increase in the tax levy.”

District 6 incumbent Diane Evertsen of Hartland Township said, “I voted against an increase in the tax levy. This is exactly the wrong time.”

Shawn Green

Coral Township’s Shawn Green, also running in District 6, gave the same message: “I did not support the Board’s decision to increase the tax levy.” While he suggested the levy will have to be increased from time to time, “now is not the time to do it. With no new construction, the slightest increase will lead to an increase in taxes.”

Rachel Smith

Rachel Smith of Wonder Lake, another District 6 challenger, pointed out she knew the estimates of the average homes tax increase was $8, but

“$8 can help feed my family for a week if I go to Aldi’s.

“The government needs to live within its means.”

Corey Brackmann

Marengo Alderman Corey Brackmann, also running for a District 6 Republican slot, said he didn’t think raising the levy at this time was a good idea.

He pointed out that he had “voted against the proposed increase in the City of Marengo.”

Michael Rein

District 5 aspirant Michael Rein of Woodstock added this thought [remember all of this is in the opening statements]:

I also think the tax levy should not have [been] raises. ”

He urged voters to look at how his opponents had voted the last two years, not just this year.

“People who voted against the tax levy also voted to increase their [own] salaries,” he added.

[See

McHenry County Board Votes on Salary Hikes

Voting “No” were

  • Virginia Peschke
  • Kathy Bergan Schmidt
  • Ersel Schuster
  • Paula Yensen]

David LaGue

“I was opposed to the increase in the tax levy,”  said David LaGue, the only farmer on the ballot in District 6.

“Workable alternatives [exist].”

He added that it wasn’t a good idea when when the economy was doing poorly.

Mike Skala

Huntley School District 158 Board President Mike Skala agreed with everyone up to that point.

“I would not have supported the tax increase,” he said. “I led the effort to keep our levy flat.:

[Afterwards, I asked what that meant. Skala explained that his Board was abating taxes that were levied in order to keep the tax bill flat.

Michael Stanard

When I asked if that meant the school district could take a 4.5% increase for 2013, he admitted that was the case. (The 4.5% would consist of the 1% CPI increase allowed this year by the Property Tax Cap, plus the 3% allowed next year.)]

Michael Stanard, challenger in District 6, explained,

“I’m in favor actually of reducing the levy.

“The only way for the government to get smaller is to take the money away.

District 6 incumbent Ersel Schuster voted against hiking the tax levy as well. She said that there “should be an outside audit” to identify items that could be cut.

Ersel Schuster

McHenry County Board incumbent Ersel Schuster voted against the tax hike.

She said there “should be an outside audit” to identify unneeded expenditures.

Missing from their forum were

  • District 5 incumbent Tina Hill
  • District 5 incumbent John Jung, Jr.
  • District 5 incumbent Virginia Peschke
  • District 6 aspirant Michele R. Aavang
  • District 6 incumbent Mary McCann
  • District 6 non-incumbent J. Vincent Ranzino

Those who voted for the levy hiking taxes on this year’s bills are in boldface type. The others who did so are mentioned in the articles.


Comments

Property Tax Hike Becoming County Board Top Issue – Part 3 — 4 Comments

  1. Didn’t Skala and Green preside over repeated tax increases in the Huntley schools and they now are tax hawks?

    Just asking.

  2. Thanks Cal for these three very illuminating articles — just in time for us to vote on Monday.

    What sneaky disgusting bastards are living among us.

  3. As usual, the above commenter Paul adds little- except for misinformation- to the discussion.

    For the record: Shawn Green was elected to the school board AFTER the referendum debacle and helped right the ship.

    During Green’s time as president of the school board, only Alden-Hebron school district had a lower tax rate than Huntley’s.

    But don’t let the facts get in the way of whatever strange personal issue you have with him, Paul!

    Thankfully you are in the minority on this one and Green, as well as Skala, are poised for landslide victories thanks to voters who care more about facts than ad hominem attacks by a blog reader.

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