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 Illinois is home to nearly nearly 6,000, layers of government,
excluding school districts – over 1,000 more than Indiana, Kentucky and Iowa
combined. The average Illinoisian lives under six layers of government, which
are often duplicative and share overlapping duties.
Illinoisians find themselves paying those multiple layers of government for
nearly identical services, leading to excessive property taxes.
Sponsored by state Rep. Jonathan Carroll, D-Northbrook, the aim of HB 1861 is to
empower taxpayers to consolidate townships at the local level without relying on
permission from Springfield. The bill failed to make it out of a House committee
by the March 26 deadline, but it could return in the fall.
While Illinois has more than 1,400 townships, only McHenry County residents
currently have the power to eliminate them. A county-specific bill was signed
into law in 2019, giving McHenry County taxpayers the opportunity to eliminate
any of the county’s townships by a referendum.
Evanston and Belleville were both required to appeal to the Illinois General
Assembly to dissolve Evanston Township and Belleville Township. Both cities
shared identical boundaries with the townships.
Despite a vote showing two-thirds of residents favored dissolution, Evanston
could only move forward after Springfield lawmakers approved. The move
ultimately saved taxpayers almost $800,000 in 2015 and will save approximately
$19.4 million over 20 years, according to The Civic Federation.
Belleville taxpayers saved $260,000 after Belleville Township was eliminated in
2017 following a multi-year effort including the special legislation. The
township’s sole function was to hand out a small amount of aid to about 40
qualifying residents.
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HB 1861 would expand the power granted to McHenry
County to all counties in Illinois, giving Illinoisans greater
autonomy to cut taxpayer-funded government inefficiencies in their
local community.
House Bill 433, the Citizen’s Empowerment Act,
would take HB 1861 a step farther. It, too, failed to advance to the
full House by March 26 but could resurface in the fall or a version
could be taken up in the Illinois Senate.
By obtaining signatures from 5% of the total residents who voted in
the preceding general election, taxpayers could put a referendum on
the next ballot to dissolve a local government entity.
While the aim of government consolidation is to save property tax
dollars, there currently is no guarantee taxpayers’ dollars cannot
be used against their efforts to eliminate government layers. House
Bill 566, sponsored by state Rep. Sam Yingling, D-Grayslake, would
prohibit the governmental unit targeted for elimination, and public
officials of that unit, from using public funds to oppose the
measure. It, too, remains in a House committee and will not be
considered by the full House during the current session.
Ultimately, Illinoisians should get to choose their local
government, not have local and state government choose what is right
for them. Consolidation is an essential step toward improving
efficiency and transparency in those local governments while
reducing Illinois homeowners’ crushing property tax burdens.
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