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 On Aug. 10, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a bill into law that could
deliver small but welcome relief to some property taxpayers across the state.
Senate Bill 2543, sponsored by state Sen. Tom Cullerton, D-Villa Park, will
allow the board of any mosquito abatement district to vote to consolidate its
district with either another mosquito abatement district or with a township,
city or county. Illinois is home to 20 mosquito abatement districts.
By consolidating these obscure units of government, local taxpayers could see
savings. Allowing their services to be absorbed by another government unit would
eliminate unnecessary administrative costs.
 Taxpayers are in desperate need of relief. And with nearly 7,000 units of
government – more than any other state in the nation – Illinois local
governments are ripe for consolidation. The average Illinois resident lives
under six layers of local government. In addition to mosquito abatement
districts, this can include townships, road districts, school districts and any
other special taxing district. Each of those layers add to Illinoisans’ high
property tax burden.
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What’s worse, these government layers are often
duplicative, meaning they fail to provide any more value to
residents for the added cost. Since levying property taxes is the
main source of revenue for local governments, it’s no wonder
Illinois has some of the highest property taxes in the nation.
SB 2543 is a step in the right direction, but it should not be the
last consolidation measure Illinois lawmakers act on. State
lawmakers should expand on these reforms to give taxpayers more
control over the consolidation process as well.
Lawmakers in Springfield should continue to support consolidation
efforts that bring taxpayer savings and provide a path toward
property tax relief. Taxpayers deserve a voice in structuring the
government they pay for.
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