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 As federal investigators circle closer to Illinois House
Speaker Michael Madigan, they have also been working on collecting records
related to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Gold Coast mansion property tax break, according
to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Federal prosecutors have been requesting records from the Cook County assessor’s
office about a $331,000 tax break the governor got after removing the toilets
during remodeling of a mansion he owns next to his own home. Authorities sought
the name of every employee who was involved in the tax break, along with
associated communications.
The improper tax breaks took place during Joe Berrios’ tenure as assessor.
Current Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi has been complying with the feds’
record requests.
In April 2019, it was revealed Pritzker and his wife, M.K., were under federal
investigation for the tax breaks. M.K. Pritzker had directed workers to remove
the toilets from the home during renovations so the mansion would be deemed
uninhabitable, resulting in a property tax break. After an inspection was
complete, she had them reinstall one toilet in J.B.’s “hangout/meeting area.”
J.B. Pritzker said he would pay the taxes when the tax dodge was revealed during
his campaign for governor, but that has not cooled the interest of
investigators.
A 2018 Cook County Inspector General report called Pritzker’s actions a “scheme
to defraud.”
Pritzker on July 17 called on Madigan to resign if the bribery allegations
involving him are true, and went on to say: “When I think about the possibility
of people committing these kinds of wrongdoings, I think people who are in
public service need to live up to the integrity of the job they were asked to
do.”
The Pritzkers hired contractor Bulley & Andrews during the mansion’s renovation.
In May, it was revealed the same company that removed Pritzker’s toilets was
also cashing in on federal contracts while still working for the governor.
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U.S. Department of Defense records show Bulley &
Andrews was awarded nearly $9 million through a U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers contract to convert the old Westlake Hospital in Melrose
Park into a COVID-19 care facility. The Corps last worked with the
firm in 1944.
Bulley & Andrews also worked as subcontractors on a
separate Corps project to reopen Advocate Sherman Hospital in Elgin.
Both jobs were to increase the state’s hospital capacity for
COVID-19 cases expected to overwhelm the health care system, but
neither hospital site has been needed and the Corps has been
criticized for the lack of transparency in awarding $1.7 billion in
contracts nationally.
Then the contractor was hired for $2.5 million to build a new home
and outbuildings at Pritzker’s Kenosha County, Wisconsin, horse
farm. According to an investigation by WFLD-TV, more than 20
construction workers, mostly from Illinois, were working on the
project despite the governor’s stay-at-home order and the fact he
has discouraged travel to other states, specifically Wisconsin,
fearing it could increase the spread of the virus in Illinois.
While Pritzker is embroiled in a federal investigation of tax fraud,
he’s asking the rest of Illinois’ taxpayers to support his plan to
raise income taxes for the third time in a decade. Pritzker so far
has put $56.5 million of his own money into a campaign to remove the
state’s flat income tax protection from the Illinois Constitution to
allow for a progressive income tax.
If voters approve Pritzker’s amendment Nov. 3, Illinoisans could
find themselves paying more taxes in six different ways. Seniors
should be especially concerned with Pritzker’s plan. While
retirement income is currently exempt from the state income tax,
Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs confirmed in June the
governor’s “fair tax” amendment would open the door for a retirement
income tax.
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