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 Illinoisans’ property taxes could increase 5%
starting in 2023 as local governments consider raising rates by the maximum
allowed level to offset losses from decades-high inflation.
Truth in Accounting founder Sheila Weinberg said Illinois experienced 7%
inflation in 2021, the highest level reported since the state instituted a
property tax cap in 1991. The Property Tax Extension Limitation law prevented
local leaders from raising property tax rates above the annual rate of
inflation, up to a maximum of 5%.
The Truth in Account website explained inflation has increased by an average
2.2% annually in Illinois since 1993, reaching a 4% high during the Great
Recession in 2008. Weinberg said local leaders can now vote to raise those rates
“even more than the already high amount they see now.”
“With inflation as high as it is, local governments will now have the option to
increase property taxes to that [maximum] level,” Weinberg told The Center
Square. “They can do this just by a vote from the village board.”
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Illinois was home to the nation’s second-highest property taxes in 2021. Its
families have paid an extra $2,288 in property taxes just since Pritzker took
office.
But if voters approve Amendment 1 on Nov. 8, a conservative estimate shows
property taxes would increase at least $2,149 during the next four years.
Because the change to the state constitution greatly expands government union
bosses’ ability to make demands over a wider range of topics, the property tax
bite could be much greater.
Amendment 1 expands the bargaining power of government union bosses to negotiate
over a near endless array of subjects, ultimately forcing residents to pay the
bill for costly contract concessions that carry more weight than state laws.
With decades-high inflation already driving up the costs of everyday goods on
Illinoisans, higher property taxes promise to push more residents out of the
state by making housing less affordable. Adding the Amendment 1 tax burden to
the load local taxing bodies are expected to impose thanks to inflation is a lot
to ask of stretched family budgets.
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