Illinois is ranked as having some of the highest property tax rates in the country. Contributing to the cost are Illinois’ nearly 7,000 units of local government, more than any other state in the nation. Detailed transparency of where property tax dollars go provides an avenue for public input and accountability.
House Bill 287, filed Jan. 10, 2017 by state Rep. David Olsen, R-Downers Grove, requires property tax bills to include the amount of tax dollars that are used by the taxing districts to pay its employees’ contributions to a public pension fund. The bill provides that by the last Tuesday of December, the taxing district must certify the amount to the county clerk.
Each year, millions of dollars are consumed by local public employee pension benefits. Taxpayers, however, do not have enough access to the true costs. To understand the full expense carried by taxpayers, each district must be required to detail a separate line item for each taxing district with the dollar amount of taxes due that will be used toward public pension fund contributions for the district’s employees.
Sign the petition today to tell your lawmaker to require property tax bills for each taxing district to show taxpayers how much money is going into local public employee pensions.