Property Tax Cauldron Begins to Boil

April 6, 2010 by CookReformer
Filed under: Budget, Taxes

Property tax assessments have long been a tool of the Cook County Democratic machine to control votes and reward political allies.

In recent years, as this Chicago Tribune report from January shows, Illinois Democrat Party Chair Mike Madigan has teamed up with Cook County Dem Chair Joe Berrios to use this tool quite effectively.

But the tax assessment scheme is quickly turning into a political hot potato that is drawing the focus of the Chicago media, causing infighting within the Democratic Party, and promising to be a huge issue when voters turn out to the polls on November 2.

Much of the debate started last year, when Republican-turned-Democrat State Rep. Paul Froehlich resigned amidst reports that he was abusing the tax assessment process for political gain.

That someone could have engaged in these activities without the knowledge or consent of “higher ups” within the Cook County Democratic Party machine is doubtful (did we mention that Cook County Dem Chair Berrios is also a Board of Review Commissioner?)

Now, with 2010 being a year in which high taxes and government spending are top-of-mind in every public opinion poll, outgoing Cook County Assessor Jim Houlihan (a Democrat) has warned that Madigan and Berrios are plotting to delay the second installment of property tax bills until after the November 2 election.

Why would they do that? Simple: with the county property tax cap having expired, and pre-housing bubble assessments promising to wallop county taxpayers with a huge property tax bill — the last thing the machine wants is an anti-tax voter backlash on Election Day. Click here to watch a video of Commissioner Peraica explaining the property tax bill issue in more detail.

The Democrat infighting further manifested itself today with the announcement by Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool that he is running for Cook County Assessor as an Independent. Watch below as Claypool announces his candidacy and takes aim at those who would abuse the tax appeals process: