Truth Takes a Holiday at Jack Franks McHenry Town Hall Meeting

At the end of the McHenry Town Hall Meeting Jack Franks ventured into the audience to face uncensored questioned.

At the end of the McHenry Town Hall Meeting Jack Franks ventured into the audience to face uncensored questioned.

Call me the fact checker in the audience.

Most knew nothing of the intricacies of the McHenry County Budget.

I know a bit more.

I know, for instance, that Jack Franks’ opponent Mike Walkup led the effort to cut $3 million out of the property tax levy last year, reducing the levy from $79 to $76 million.

And I know that Walkup has called for zeroing out the Valley Hi levy for the coming year as well, knowing full well that will eliminate Valley Hi’s taxing authority forever.

Now, it’s not Jack Franks’ duty to tell what his opponent has done to cut county taxes 4.6%, but he should tell the truth about county government’s tax levy.

The fact is that the county tax levy went down from $79 million to $76 million.

I present the evidence below.  It is available to all on the County Clerk’s web site under “Taxes.”

First, click on “Tax Computation Report” for 2014. It’s right on top of the list of options.

And the first government whose property tax data is shown is McHenry County. You can see the relevant part below:

This shows the taxes levied by McHenry County in 2014 for collection in 2015. Note the total in the lower right hand corner is $79 million.

This shows the taxes levied by McHenry County in 2014 for collection in 2015. Note the total in the lower right hand corner is $79 million.

What you see above shows the real estate taxes we were asked to pay last year.

Next, click on “Tax Computation Report ALL” under the year 2015. For some reason, this is not right on top anymore.

Once you have found the series of reports, you will note that McHenry County government is again on top. Here is what you see on the left two-thirds of the page:

Note that in the lower right hand corner, the figure to be collected from real estate taxpayers is $79 million for this year's payments.

Note that in the lower right hand corner, the figure to be collected from real estate taxpayers is $76 million for this year’s payments.

OK.

Let’s do some simple subtraction.

$79 million minus $76 million equals $3 million.

Having laid out the facts, now let me quote what Jack Franks said about the subject at his McHenry Town Hall Meeting.

“I’m going to be the one to cut the levy. They’ve never done that.”

Really?

The statement quoted from Jack Franks at his McHenry Town Hall Meeting is completely false and deserves four

The statement quoted from Jack Franks at his McHenry Town Hall Meeting is completely false and deserves “Four Pinocchios.”

If I were the Washington Post, I would give that statement Four Pinocchios.

How about you?


Comments

Truth Takes a Holiday at Jack Franks McHenry Town Hall Meeting — 20 Comments

  1. Another evening of Jacko’s pants
    Bursting into fire & the wooden
    Man-nose growing a foot in an hour.

  2. Did everyone see the news?!

    Franks’ bill to end pension for county board members passed!

  3. Who is pulling the strings on Jack Franks campaign because he’s almost certainly not that dumb.

    Or is he just really desperate so lied.

    Or did he just assume the County had not reduced the levy….which seems unlikely because one of his main pitches is a goal to reduce the property tax levy 10% for all taxing districts in McHenry County, in which case presumably he would have done some research on past property tax levies…or is that just a bunch of BS too.

    Who are the dark suits at the podium and door.

    Time to write letters to newspapers, Illinois Review, and pass out campaign flyers to get the word out that the McHenry County Board Property tax levy was reduced about $3 Million Dollars (1%) from $79M in 2015 to $76M in 2014 because it appears the audience at the Jack Franks campaign event on Monday September 1, 2016 was unaware of this fact.

    This primary and general election cycle has been filled with garbage:

    – Democrat Jeffery Lichte filing as a Republican candidate for March 8, 2016 63rd District State Representative primary election.

    – Jeffery Lichte’s petition passers other than himself were from outside McHenry County; most if not all of them young adults (Lichte is a senior citizen)

    – A picture of Jeffery Lichte’s house on Google Maps contains a Jack Franks campaign sign.

    – Jeffery Lichte is photographed in the McHenry Fiesta Days Parade on July 24, 2016 (reported in the blog July 28, 2016) wearing a Jack Franks hat, driving a Jack Franks campaign vehicle.

    – Jeffery Licthe has been listed under the Host Committee on past Jack Franks fundraiser flyers.

    – Jeffery Lichte had no campaign flyers, no campaign signs, did not show up at the League of Womens Voters forum debate at McHenry County College for the 63rd District State Representative position.

    – John Biesk the Committee Chair of Government for the People independent expenditure PAC (supporting Jeffery Lichte and opposing Steve Reick) forgetting how to spell his name (spelled it Bieck) on line 9 of the D-1 Statement of Organization form (how many adults forget how to print their name?)

    – The IEA teacher union PAC (IPACE) filing a B-1 Expenditure for $12,500 on March 8th to Government for the People PAC (one day after the PAC was formed) for mailers (remember the attack mailers on Steve Reick) to the address of Shaw Decremer (who the Chicago Tribune has called Michael Madigan’s top campaign aide; he’s since moved on to become a lobbyist), then one day letter writing a letter to the Illinois State Board of Education that the address on the D-1 Statement of Organization should be used.

    – Mayors with underfunded police (in the case of Crystal Lake also fire) pensions endorsing a Democrat candidate whose pledge is to cut their tax revenue 10%, the plan to cut taxes 10% will not be presented until after the election,

  4. McHenry County Tax Computation Report (for the county taxing district)

    2014 Levy Request $79,486,825

    less

    2015 Levy Request $76,574,775

    equals

    $2,912,050 reduction in requested taxes from 2014 to 2015, which is 1%.

    ++++++++

    2014 Extension $78,966,290

    less

    2015 Extension $76,289,016

    equals

    $2,677,274 reduction in extension (amount that was billed to taxpayers) from 2014 to 2015, which is 1%.

    +++++++++

    2014 Levy Request $79,486,825

    less

    2014 Extension $78,966,290

    equals

    $520,535.

    Meaning, $79,486,825 was requested by taxing districts, $78,966,290 was approved by the county to be billed to taxpayers, a reduction of $520,535.

    ++++++++++

    2015 Levy Request $76,574,775

    less

    2015 Extension $76,289,016

    equals

    $285,756.

    Meaning, $76,574,775 was requested by taxing districts, and $76,289,016 was approved by the county to be billed to taxpayers, a reduction of $285,756.

  5. The Governor Bruce Rauner administration’s Turnaround Agenda includes a property tax levy freeze.

    But Democrats have resisted him.

    Now we have Jack Franks going one step further than Governor Bruce Rauner, in calling for a 10% property tax reduction in every taxing district in McHenry County.

    If anyone thinks Jack Franks alone has the power to reduce property taxes 10% in all taxing districts in McHenry County, they don’t understand the Democratic process of approving or reducing property taxes.

  6. Andrew Gasser is the hero that led
    The charge & took ALOT of heat on
    The pension issue.

    I CAN’T HEAR Franko’s high pitched
    Egotistical rhetoric screaming,
    Me Me Me, I I.

    I on top of more contrived
    Media attention from the NWH.

  7. The only thing jacko uses a chainsaw
    For is the wood that feeds the fire when
    His PANTS frequently burst into flames
    While the wooden man-nose grows
    Longer.

  8. Jack Franks takes credit for saving the taxpayers $50,000 annually when County Board pensions will be eliminated, which is one of the smallest pensions in the state.

    Meanwhile Jack Franks has never declined participating in the General Assembly Retirement System (GARS), even though about 20% of legislators do not participate in the system, and even though GARS is a more lucrative and costly pension system than IMRF.

    And last night at his campaign event at the McHenry VFW, the local blogger reported that Mr Franks said the county has never reduced taxes.

    But a quick look at the McHenry County Tax Computation Reports indicates that in 2015 McHenry county taxes were reduced $2,677,274.

    Meaning the 2015 tax extension for the County was $2,677,274 less than the 2014 tax extension for the county.

  9. $3 million is more that 1%.

    1% of $79 million would be $790,000.

  10. “I’m going to be the one to cut the levy. They’ve never done that.”

    The size of Jacko’s man-nose is tree
    Sized now.

    That must be hard to walk in a STRAIGHT
    LINE with all that weight out in front.

    NO RESPECT for Jacko Franco HERE.

  11. Hillary is almost as good as Bill.

    Jack come in after Richie Durbin.

  12. McHenry County tax levy was cut 3.6% ($2,912,050) from 2014 to 2015, from $79,486,825 to $76,574,775.

    The tax levy is the request from the taxing district to the County.

    ++++++++++++++

    McHenry County tax extension was cut 3.4% ($2,677,274) from 20014 – 2015, from $78,966,290 to $76,289,016.

    The tax extension is the amount that gets billed to the taxpayers.

    ++++++++++

    The formula for calculating percentage decrease is (Beginning figure – Ending figure) / Beginning figure.

    To calculate percentage increase, the numerator is reversed but the denominator remains the same.

    The formula for calculating percentage increase is (Ending figure – Beginning figure) / Beginning figure.

  13. Watchdog2- you are delusional if you think the pension vote did not come due to public pressure led by Franks.

    There was a Democrat that ran in 4 ten years ago that talked about the healthcare and the pensions- and the mileage.

    Who gets mileage to go to a meeting your paid for- your county board- that’s who.

    I don’t care who jumped on the bandwagon to lead that charge afterwards- that vote was due to public pressure.

  14. Here is what Jack Franks was reported by the local blogger to have said at the Jack Franks for McHenry County Board Chair Town Hall Meeting campaign event at the McHenry VFW on Thursday, September 1, 2016.

    “I’m going to be the one to cut the levy.

    They’ve never done that.”

    ++++++

    However, the McHenry County Board cut the levy 3.6% ($2,912,050) in 2015 (comparing 2014 to 2015).

  15. The County contribution to IMRF for County Board pensions is about $53K or so annually which is a small part of the overall county property tax levy in 2015 of $76,574,775.

    $53,000 / $76,574,775 = .00069.

    That’s about 7 one hundredths of one percent.

    Mileage would be even less.

    So maybe they should be cut and maybe they shouldn’t but it will have a negligible effect on property taxes.

    There are plenty of other cost saving areas that should be a priority.

    Such as those in the Turnaround Agenda put out by the Bruce Rauner administration, but Jack Franks is against most of those (he’s for some consolidation).

    Jack Franks has called Governor Bruce Rauner a union buster, and does not seem to want to reign in any union costs, which is not surprising, as unions are among his biggest supporters, along with trial lawyers, and those two are paired for instance in worker compensation lawsuits by employees.

    Jack Franks has said he has some cost savings ideas.

    But he refuses to discuss them until after the election.

    One big cost savings idea is repealing some unfunded mandate hikes that state legislators including Jack Franks put on local governments.

    But Jack Franks does not talk about that, likely because he voted for unfunded mandates as a state legislator.

    Even though Jack Franks was on the Consolidation and Unfunded Mandate Task force that was chaired by Illinois Lieutenant Governor Evelyn Sanguinetti.

    That report was released in 2016.

    http://www.illinois.gov/ltg/news/PressReleases/Local-Gov-Final-Report.pdf

    The Illinois Municipal League (which represents municipalities) put out a report dated March 4, 2015 about unfunded mandates from state lawmakers to local units of government.

    http://legislative.iml.org/page.cfm?key=15216

    That latter report lists the Public Act numbers for many unfunded mandates.

    Jack Franks has been in office since the 91st General Assembly (1999 – 2000):

    92nd GA, 2001 – 2002
    93rd GA, 2003 – 2004
    94th GA, 2005 – 2006
    95th GA, 2007 – 2008
    96th GA, 2009 – 2010
    97th GA, 2011 – 2012
    98th GA, 2013 – 2014
    99th GA, 2015 – 2016

    Thus this is the 16th year that Jack Franks has been a State Representative.

    He claims he has never voted for a tax hike.

    But he has voted for legislation that resulted in tax hikes, such as unfunded mandates and underfunded mandates.

    The worst of those unfunded and underfunded mandates are legislative pension and retiree healthcare benefit hikes, as one sentence added to the Illinois State Constitution on December 15, 1970 states retirement benefits are contractual and can’t be diminished or impaired.

    Thus once an employee qualifies for the benefit, that benefit hike stays with the employee until they die.

    Most pension and retiree healthcare benefit hikes occurred when pensions and retiree healthcare was already underfunded.

    Hiking pension benefits when the pension system is already underfunded makes no fiscal sense.

    Ditto retiree healthcare.

    Pensions are the biggest fiscal problem in the state of Illinois.

    Unless endless tax hikes or service cuts are desired, a way must be found to scale back hiked benefits to existing workers.

    Jack Franks voted for pension and retiree healthcare benefit hikes to underfunded pensions.

    There are many transparency measures that can help shed some light on these problems, but a lot of water is already over the dam, and transparency will help future damage not past damage.

    Jack Franks making a big deal that he brought to light the issue which county board then took action on, which is saving taxpayers $53,000 in the annual county board contribution to the IMRF pension fund for county board pensions, while denying the County Board cut the levy $2,912,050 in 2015, is ridiculous.

    $2,912,050 is a lot more than $53,000.

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