Mount Prospect considers suspending or dropping its vehicle sticker program

Mount Prospect Mayor Paul Hoefert said he has been waiting more than 31 years for the village to eliminate its vehicle sticker program.

He might finally get his wish, now that the village is flush with surplus revenue from sales, home-rule and income taxes.

"If it was up to me, we'd eliminate it today," Hoefert said Tuesday.

But Hoefert's enthusiasm for getting rid of the sticker isn't shared by some members of his village board, who expressed reservations this week when they discussed suspending the sticker for a year and foregoing a projected $1.4 million in revenue.

The stickers cost $45 for passenger vehicles, $30 for motorcycles or motorbikes, and $68 for trucks with B plates. Revenue is earmarked for street construction.

Village Finance Director Amit Thakkar said it costs about $112,000 a year to administer the program.

Thakkar said the village is projecting a surplus of $8.7 million in state-shared tax revenues, which include sales, home-rule and income taxes. The village can apply $1.4 million from the sales tax toward street construction and put the vehicle sticker program on hold for a year, he said.

The idea did not gain support from the village's finance commission, which raised concerns about the variable nature of sales tax revenues and how those might be affected by a struggling economy.

Among those urging caution Tuesday was Trustee Richard Rogers, who said that if the village were to eliminate the sticker, it could not bring it back.

"There would be such an uproar in the community," he said. "This idea of suspension, we might as well vote to eliminate it, if that's where it's going.

"I also believe that we are heading to some financial difficulty in the near future, whether that's a recession or maybe even worse," Rogers added. "And if the sales tax then drops off, we won't be able to fund this $1.4 million."

Thakkar suggested that as a replacement, the village can in the future levy $1.4 million in property taxes for streets and bridges. That would increase the burden on the average household by $73.80, less than the cost of two vehicle stickers.

The board will make its final decision when it votes on the upcoming budget.

Palatine dropped its vehicle sticker requirement earlier this month.