The Illinois Department of Revenue recently announced that the final equalization factor for the Cook County 2018 property assessment year (taxes payable in 2019) is 2.9109. Each year the Illinois Department of Revenue calculates equalization factors for every county in order to achieve uniform property assessment throughout the State. The 2018 final equalization factor of 2.9109 is less than…
The following blog post discusses how the City of Chicago has used surplus revenue in its tax increment financing (TIF) districts since 2013. TIF is a powerful economic development tool for the City of Chicago, particularly at a time when capital and development funding from the State of Illinois and federal government has been scarce. One out of every four properties in the City is in a TIF…
Click here to read the full report. Click here to read the press release for this analysis. SUMMARY Amid one of the longest economic expansions in U.S. history, the State of Illinois still faces daunting fiscal challenges. The list includes chronic operating deficits, a multi-billion dollar backlog of unpaid bills, crushing public pension costs and five consecutive years of population…
The Civic Federation supports Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi’s goals of a more accurate and transparent assessment system, as well as his goal of getting assessments right the first time, which will reduce the cost of appeals to taxpayers by reducing the number of appeals needed. Improved public confidence in property assessments would go a long way toward making the system as a whole more…
A Civic Federation blog post last week raised questions about the revenue estimate attached to Governor J.B. Pritzker’s graduated income tax plan. After the post was published, the Governor’s Office released an explanation of the methodology used to arrive at the estimate. The new information shows how the plan could bring in $3.4 billion of additional revenue by raising effective tax rates on…
Click here to read the full report. Click here to read the press release for this report. AT A GLANCE The Civic Federation released this report in advance of the April 2, 2019 Chicago municipal election for consideration by the public and candidates for Mayor, Treasurer, Aldermanic Office and the City Clerk. The report details the City of Chicago’s major financial challenges, as well…
The following blog post explores the idea of a downtown congestion fee and the factors that would need to be considered if Chicago were to impose such a fee. The Civic Federation does not take a position on any type of congestion pricing or whether it should be implemented in Chicago. This blog post is intended for informational purposes only. According to the Federal Highway Administration,…
Click here to read the full report. Click here to read the press release for this report. AT A GLANCE Prior to the release of the Governor’s annual budget recommendation, the Institute for Illinois’ Fiscal Sustainability at the Civic Federation releases an analysis of the State of Illinois’ fiscal condition. This report presents the Civic Federation’s multi-year plan to stabilize Illinois’…
The Civic Federation recently released its annual Effective Property Tax Rates report, which examines two- and ten-year trends in estimated effective tax rates for residential, commercial and industrial property in selected northeastern Illinois communities. The report highlights that in the ten-year period between tax years 2007 and 2016, effective tax rates increased in all of the selected…
Click here to read this issue brief. This annual brief provides a compilation of selected consumer taxes, including rates and descriptions, in place in the City of Chicago as of January 1, 2019. The taxes in this report are grouped under the following categories: sales taxes, tobacco-related taxes, beverage-related taxes, utility-related taxes, accommodations-related taxes,…
