Tax Relief? Repeal the Entire Stroger Sales Tax Hike
The Chicago Tribune reports about how some on the county board are trumpeting the “tax relief” provided when they (spurred by Commissioner Peraica) shaved half a percentage point off the massive sales tax increase pushed by Todd Stroger in 2008.
Calling that minute, half-percentage point reduction “tax relief” is an insult to the taxpayers of Cook County — who deserve nothign less than a full repeal of the Stroger tax hike.
Commissioner Peraica is quoted in the Tribune:
“In my mind, it was just a partial rollback of an ill-advised tax increase,” said Commissioner Tony Peraica, R-Riverside, who voted against the original increase. “I wanted the whole increase rolled back.”
Today’s Taxing News: Tax Collections Down; Out-of-Town Visitors Getting Whacked
There were two tidbits in today’s headlines that further support my push to fully repeal the Stroger sales tax hike in Cook County.
First, despite rising taxes and fees, tax collections are actually down in the state (again). As the Champaign News-Gazette reports, overall state tax collections are down 9.5% in July.
The reason for this decline? Simple: people are out of work. When they are out of work, their incomes drop (obviously). That leads to a drop in income tax revenues. They also consume less, which leads to a drop in sales taxes. It is for that reason that increasing the income tax and keeping sales taxes high will only further decimate our economy.
If government takes more of the people’s money, it will only cause them to suffer more and spend less. For those individuals who are small business owners, that will also affect job creation.
Pat Quinn and Todd Stroger are wrong: we need less, not more, taxes.
That coincides with another story today that shows that “Chicago is the worst tax city for travelers.” USA Today reports on a new study by the National Business Travel Association:
The study looked at the 50 U.S. cities with the most air passengers. It found that a typical business traveler pays $101.27 in taxes on average for hotel, rental car and meals during a three-day, two-night stay in Chicago— more than in any other city.
So, in other words, our local politicians are doing their best to repel new visitors, tourists and conventioneers from our city. Once again, that won’t result in more tax revenue — it will result in further economic harm that will put our governments deeper in debt.
Not smart. Not smart at all.
Tony on Quinn’s Cook County “Tax Reform” Gimmick
PrairieStater.com quotes Tony regarding the gimmicky Cook County property “tax reform” bill signed into law this week by Governor Quinn:
Cook County Commissioner Tony Peraica (R-16), who is also a real estate attorney, is looking for real reform. “We need to reform the tax assessment process to reflect that of Texas, Florida and dozens of other states where you don’t need a PhD in mathematics to figure out how your real estate is assessed and taxed,” Peraica said. “I don’t support these gimmicks and would move for a system that would promote truth in taxation. I would support acquisition based assessment: what is the purchase price of the property, apply the tax levy of various taxing units (there are way to many) and that is your bill. Forget about the equalizer. Exemptions granted should be clear and easy to calculate/implement.”
VIDEO: County Board Update
In Case You Missed It: Tribune Whacks Endorsers of Stroger, Berrios
Filed under: Blagojevich, Budget, Corruption, Elections, Mayor Daley, Reform, Taxes, Todd Stroger
We meant to post this earlier today, because it’s just a wonderful editorial by the Chicago Tribune.
Not only does the Tribune take a nice whack at all those Democrat politicians who endorsed Todd Stroger for County Board President in 2006 — they whack many of those same politicians for endorsing Cook County Board of Review Commissioner/Cook Democratic Party Chair Joe Berrios in 2010:
The list of pols who endorsed Stroger survives online, and for that we’re supremely grateful. His endorsers remain stakeholders in his broken promises, his patronage-larded budgets, and his notorious Friends and Family Hiring Plan.
Much as they might wish voters would forget their Stroger legacy, he’s all theirs:
Mayor Richard M. Daley is on the list, as are Durbin and now-President Obama. So are U.S. Reps. Bobby Rush, Jesse Jackson Jr., Dan Lipinski, Danny Davis, Jan Schakowsky and current White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.
Five statewide officeholders — Rod Blagojevich, Pat Quinn, Lisa Madigan, Dan Hynes and Jesse White — also urged the rest of us to elect Todd Stroger.
And here’s the piece about Berrios:
What’s especially galling is that many of those who endorsed Stroger now have endorsed his crony Joe Berrios, a lobbyist, member of the county tax appeal board and candidate for the influential office of county assessor. When not in Springfield lobbying Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan (a Stroger endorser) and Senate President John Cullerton (a Berrios endorser), Berrios passes judgment on … tax appeals for clients of Madigan’s and Cullerton’s law firms. That conflict is grotesque.
Good for the Chicago Tribune.
We’re somewhat surprised they didn’t mention the fact that their competitor, the Sun-Times, also endorsed Todd in 2006.
VIDEO: Duck-and-Dodge with Joe Berrios
This weekend’s Fox Chicago Sunday appearance by Cook County Board of Review Commissioner Joe Berrios was very telling.
Watch as Berrios — also the Cook County Democratic Party Chair — pooh-pooh’s questions about him being too cozy with insiders such as State Democratic Chair Mike Madigan who, by the way, is a tax appeals attorney whose law firm brings cases before Berrios.
Is Berrios employing the old “Rostenkowski Defense” (everybody’s doing it, so I should, too)?
Another Week, Another Round of Questionable Stroger Contracts
It was only a matter of time.
Todd Stroger’s rein is up in November, but he’s spending his final months making sure friends and allies have their turn at the county tax till.
Today’s Chicago Sun-Times reports on more questionable Stroger contracts — including one to a firm owned by his Deputy Chief of Staff Carla Oglesby, who was at the center of a previously-reported questionable contract:
The Stroger administration now confirms the two contracts, totaling about $50,000, are among a dozen under investigation by the county’s ethics board and inspector general. The Cook County state’s attorney’s office also is investigating, law enforcement sources told the Sun-Times.
They include a public relations contract given to a company by the name of Urban Rapport for $24,975 “to build awareness of the department’s (Department of Environmental Control) energy and conservation program,” according to a letter written by Stroger’s Deputy Chief of Staff Carla Oglesby to green light the contract.
But a check of state and county records shows that Urban Rapport, run by convicted felon and hip-hop promoter Terrell “Shorty Capone” Harris, isn’t a registered businesses in Illinois — a requirement of businesses doing contract work for Cook County.
A similar contract to spread the word about the county’s green initiative was given to Arrei Management Inc., once owned by Stroger’s beleaguered chief of staff Oglesby and dissolved in 2008, state records show. Stroger already suspended Oglesby for signing off on a $24,975 contract for her private public relations firm — CGC Communications — in recent months.
It’s raining money for Todd’s friends in 2010.
Too bad that, while the rest of Cook County is suffering from rampant unemployment, Todd’s friends and allies are having no problems finding Cook County jobs in 2010.
Todd Serves Up Another Tasty Double-Dip
Filed under: Corruption, Reform, Spending, Taxes, Todd Stroger
The Cook County Board failed to override Todd Stroger’s veto of the board’s hiring freeze. So it appears Todd is going to continue to thumb his nose at the taxpayers by hiring cronies to sweetheart, taxpayer-funded county jobs.
The latest is Todd’s friend, State Rep. Art Turner. You see, he makes more than $87,000 per year as a state legislator.
But now, thanks to Todd Stroger, Turner will also make a $110,575 salary as the director of the county’s President’s Office of Employment and Training (POET) .
Two salaries. Both paid for by the taxpayers. A tasty double-dip.
And Turner will be overseeing a department that has already been the source of much controversy. As the Sun-Times reports:
(POET) has been besieged by by criticism of mismanagement of grant funds, most recently by the presidents of several south and southwest suburban colleges.
“POET’s inability to properly administer … grant funds has cost our Dislocated Worker, Adult and Youth Programs significantly in the past five years,” George Dammer, President of South Suburban College wrote in a letter to Cook County Commissioners.
In a Monday e-mail, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity confirms that POET had to return $8.4 million in grant money between 2003 and 2008 — dollars that could have helped a County whose unemployment rate has hovered between 10 and 11 percent
The job-training program, serving 16- to 24-year-olds in the south and west suburbs, has also been the target of criminal investigations.
Its former financial manager was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to stealing more than $100,000 from the program.
And in 2008, three former POET employees were charged with conspiring with two ministers to siphon more than $2 million from banks and taxpayers for sham training, prosecutors said.
Turner will be on the job for six months, until Stroger’s term expires and a new County Board President takes office. Can he turn around this beleagured program before then?
Perhaps. But we know for certain he’ll cash in at your expense during that time period.
And Todd Stroger can dutifully claim he created good-paying jobs …. among his friends and relatives, that is.
Local Governments Lobbying Other Governments … At Your Expense
Filed under: Blagojevich, Budget, Reform, Spending, Taxes
The Sun-Times brings us this disturbing look at the lobbyists who are making money at taxpayers expense.
Your local and state governmental bodies are claiming their out of cash (usually as justification for raising your taxes) — yet they are hiring high-paid lobbyists to lobby other governmental organizations.
Yes, you heard that right. Governmental bodies are lobbying other governmental bodies. And they’re hiring private lobbyists at your expense to do it.
According to the Sun-Times, here are five of the “clout heavy” lobbyists and the amount of taxpayer funds used to pay them to lobby other government agencies:
| Langdon Neal chairman of the Chicago Board of Elections |
$508,000 |
| William O. Lipinski former Democratic congressman from Chicago |
$339,459 |
| William Luking longtime lobbyist for City Hall, Chicago schools |
$183,443 |
| Vince Williams former campaign manager for Cook County Board Pres. Todd Stroger |
$182,000 |
Todd Just Keeps On Keepin’ On
Filed under: Corruption, Reform, Spending, Taxes, Todd Stroger
The county board has repeatedly failed to override Todd Stroger’s veto of the hiring freeze passed by the commissioners — and so it looks like Todd has just kept on doing what he does best: abusing your tax dollars.
As this latest Fox News Chicago report shows, more questionable sweetheart contracts have come to light:
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