martin stack: Candidate Profile

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Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioQA Bio City: western springsWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Twitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: 1st District Board of Review Age: 58Family: Children: Three DaughtersDad died in 2004, Mother lives in Western Springs, Illinois. I have a brother and two sisters and they also reside in Western Springs.Occupation: AttorneyEducation: Saint Xavier College 1980 BALoyola University 1983 MSJohn Marshall Law School JDCivic involvement: Lyons Senior AssociationHaymarket HouseElected offices held: No previous elective offices held.Questions Answers What special knowledge or experience do you have that particularly qualifies you to be on the Board of Review? If you are an incumbent, describe your main contributions. Tell us of any important initiatives you've led. If you are a challenger, what would you bring to the board and what would your priority be?My priority would make the Board user friendly for Homeowners. Property comparisons for homeowners should be provided by the Board of Review. Most importantly, the Board should move to eliminate the existing deadlines for homeowners or at the very least greatly expand the period homeowners have to submit appeals to the Board of Review.The Board should publish by township, the largest dollar reductions and percentage reductions granted by the Board. It should also provide this very same information by ranking - for the county as a whole.How should the Board of Review effectively balance the financial needs of the county with the requests from taxpayers to lower assessments?Each case should be decided on its own merits. I believe that incorporating a balancing test, policy or philosophy could lead to unintended consequences. The County would be best served if each case was fairly evaluated, and impartially decided.How do you view the responsibilities of the board and the level of assessments as they apply to commercial and to residential taxpayers? What differences do you see between the two types of taxpayer and how should the board of review be set up to deal with them appropriately?Commercial property owners are invariably represented by attorneys. These attorneys are highly skilled in real estate tax appeals. Homeowners on the other hand are not so well represented. The Board's website should be adjusted to accept homeowner appeals year round. That is, Board deadlines for homeowners should be eliminated. The site should also provide a straight forward way of finding property anywhere in the county using common addresses or with proximity software. The Board's site should provide access to a homeowner's property tax records and associate a homeowner's records to other similar or like properties for comparison.Describe your position on transparency and customer service at the board of review. How easy and convenient is it for average citizens to appeal their taxes? What, if anything, should be done to improve procedures?Currently, I believe that it is not easy for the average citizen/homeowner to appeal property taxes. I stand on my commitment to either greatly expand or eliminate deadlines for homeowners who file for relief. There's no good reason to force homeowners to comply with artificial deadlines. The Board needs to publish results in a readable manner. The evidence used in granting a tax reduction should also be made public.Please list any elected office you've ever run for and what the result of that election was. Have you ever been appointed to fill an unexpired term?No.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?The Board needs to abandon practices that cause suspicion. Some Board Commissioners use outreach seminars as political indoctrination tools. There is no evidence to suggest that these seminars benefit homeowners. If the Board did its job correctly, the outreach program could be truncated or could be discontinued. I will review this practice with an eye toward greatly reforming it. I also believe that the need for suburban Board offices has to be audited. As a practicing attorney, I see Board offices within the suburban district court houses. It has to be determined what public good is served by them.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Sheriff Thomas Dart.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?To treat everyone the same regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, infimrity or any other perceived difference. We were told to respsect everyone, especially our elders.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have studied harder in school and been more involved in extracurriular activities.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?History. I believe while history cannot presage the future, it can help us understand our shared experiences, so that we can better face the future.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Continue your education. Don't stop just because you're done with school or think you are. Education sets you free from bonds of ignorance and prejudice.