An op-ed piece in the Chicago Sun-Times Wednesday by Chicago Alderman George Cardenas argues that suburbanites who work in the city should be charged $200 a year for the privilege.
“The citizens of Chicago cannot and should not continue to subsidize non-resident workers through tax increases, resident fee increases and higher utilization fees.”
OK.
Let’s trade.
You folks in Chicago pay property taxes as high as we do in the suburbs and we’ll pay you $200 a year to work in those big buildings that allow your property taxes to be so low.
Oh, and when you pay those much, much higher real estate taxes, you’ll get much lower State Aid to Education.
Fair enough?
In return we quit all State re-directs of our tax dollars to Chicago schools and roads.
We disband CMAP.
Again, public servants are CLUE-LESS.
They live only in the world that is discussed among themselves at their own inane fundraisers.
Why don’t we bring industry to Mchenry county and pay decent wages so that people don’t have to commute to Chicago.
Lower our tax base because of the commercial input.
No that makes to much sense.
Moody’s cut Chicago’s bond rating to junk two days ago.
Anybody that works downtown is already subsidizing Chicago with their insane taxes on food, beverages, cigarettes, hotels, parking fees, public transportation costs etc.
The ducks are lining up for a Chicago bankruptcy and this alderman would chase more of the “payers” out of the city.
People who work downtown are getting more pay also because there are few private good paying jobs in McHenry County.
Where are our politicians making jobs here so people don’t have to commute to Chicago for jobs?
Republicans won the house with saying where are the jobs, well we are still waiting and not low paying McD’s jobs but good paying jobs so we can afford the property taxes out here.
I wouldn’t get excited about this.
Too many big wigs working in Chicago and living elsewhere. They won’t go for that.
They are just pulling at straws right now.
Chicago is in trouble since the visit from Rauner and the Moody move.
Mchenry County is canary in coal mine for Chicago.
Our property values have been destroyed–below values 20 years ago– because the path of least resistance to obtain money is through property tax payers.
What will Chicago do when property values suddenly drop 50%?
This is not only plausible but probable, and Woodstock Il is the case study to support this projection.
Chicago property tax rates will then jump above 4% of home values (as we pay here in McHenry County).
At that tax rate, the death spiral of property value is perhaps impossible to pull out from.
That Chicago alderman is straight up delusional.
Karma, the only jobs politicians create use taxpayer dollars to fund them.
McHenry County is not inviting to the job creators because of the high taxes and fees used to support a bloated government which we can no longer afford.
Most of those taxes are used to support the schools which produce some of the worst results in the state.
We have a county department of health which has ‘chased’ several honest business owners out of the county due to their confrontational enforcement of many ridiculous statutes.
A classic example was the Historical Society cookie fiasco!
I will state that McHenry County is a classic example of the voters getting the government they deserve.
If you do not vote, you have no real right to complain.
Rauner can ONLY turn this situation around IF he gets a tiny bit of support from Mike Madigan and John Cullerton – instead all he has been given is hearing after hearing to SUPPORT the current untenable situation of union control of this state.
This will not change unless people like Jack Franks denounce the Democrat party in Illinois and run as Republicans to support the Republican platform.