Township stands behind Palatine in sales tax fight

Palatine Township officials are publicly pledging their support to the village of Palatine should it try to secede from Cook County.

Talk of splitting from the county has surfaced in recent weeks after the Cook County Board approved a 1 percentage point sales tax hike, which will result in a disparity between towns near the county line.

At a township board meeting Monday night, elected officials agreed to send a letter of support to the village, after it was recommended by Town Clerk Kevin O'Connell.

Even though the township does not collect sales tax, O'Connell said if businesses move out of the area, the township will be hurt when it comes to property taxes.

"Supervisor Linda Fleming agreed, saying, "It's a domino effect."

Now, the Palatine sales tax rate is 8.75 percent. After an RTA hike in April, it will go up to 9 percent. Once the new county sales tax increase goes into effect July 1, Palatine shoppers will pay 10 percent.

Across the border in Lake County, neighboring Deer Park now has a sales tax rate of 6.5 percent. After the RTA hike, it will go up to 7 percent, 3 percentage points less than Palatine.

"Let's face it - we all know where Deer Park is," said O'Connell. "We need to let the county know that there are governments out here unhappy about this."

Palatine officials have sent a letter to county board President Todd Stroger, asking him to come and address Northwest suburban residents and officials about the sales tax hike.

Added Trustee William Huley: "Something good may come out of it, if you apply enough pressure."