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Close vote increases Kane County Forest Preserve District tax bills

It's been three years since the Kane County Forest Preserve District commissioners increased the property tax levy. That streak ends next year.

Commissioners, in a rare 12-11 vote, raised the tax levy Tuesday to factor in new property growth. The move is expected to bring in about $65,000 of new money. It also means tax payments to the forest preserve district won't fall as much as they otherwise would have.

The tax bill for an average $233,000 home would drop by about $2.14 if commissioners kept the freeze in place. Instead, that tax bill will drop by only about $1.75.

That's a smaller tax bill either way, but commissioners voting against the levy increase didn't see it that way.

Commissioner Kurt Kojzarek said his colleagues who voted to unfreeze the levy Tuesday voted for a tax increase. He said the intent, ever since the 2011 land acquisition referendum, is to return the tax rate back to that pre-referendum level.

"If it's supposed to go back to $5, and you only go back to $3, that's a tax increase," Kojzarek said. "And I just don't think it's the time for that."

Kojzarek was one of only four Republicans on the county board to vote against the tax levy increase. He was joined by seven Democrats. In contrast, nine Republicans voted to raise the levy. Three Democrats joined them.

Several commissioners noted in conversation after the vote that commissioners facing re-election in 2016 were especially cognizant of how their votes might be viewed. That didn't seem to deter commissioners. Five of the "yes" votes came from commissioners who will appear on 2016 ballots.

Commissioner Drew Frasz supported the tax levy increase during committee debate the past couple of months. But he voted "no" Tuesday.

"The more I thought about it, I'm like, we've done it for (three years), let's do it one more," Frasz said.

Frasz said he would have supported continued use of riverboat gambling proceeds to balance the forest district's budget for a little while longer. He believes both the forest district and the county have done good jobs of controlling taxes while addressing lagging employee wages in recent years.

But, for both taxing districts, "there's going to be a time when it catches up to you," Frasz said.

Frasz, vice chairman of the county board, said he's hoping to keep the county's tax levy frozen for at least one more year if not two.

"That effort has been bipartisan, and I'm really proud of what we've done," Frasz said.

Raising the levy

How Kane County Forest Preserve District commissioners voted Tuesday:

<b>12 votes to raise levy:</b>Deb Allan (D)

Maggie Auger (R)

Brian Dahl (D)

Mark Davoust (R)

Becky Gillam (R)

Joe Haimann (D)

John Hoscheit (R)

Bill Lenert (R)

Phil Lewis (R)

John Martin (R)

Doug Scheflow (R)

Barb Wojnicki (R)

<b>11 votes for frozen levy:</b>Theresa Barreiro (D)

Cristina Castro (D)

Drew Frasz (R)

Don Ishmael (D)

Kurt Kojzarek (R)

Myrna Molina (D)

Brian Pollock (D)

Monica Silva (D)

T.R. Smith (R)

Susan Starrett (R)

Maria Vazquez (D)

Source: Kane County

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