Time for politicians to deal with property taxes

Illinois businesses and homeowners have paid excessive property taxes far too long.

Politicians recognize the problem, and shortly after Gov. JB Pritzker took office, he assembled a large legislative task force to analyze the situation and make recommendations.

However, little has been accomplished since that time.

Meanwhile, not only has pension reform been elusive, there is legislation working its way through Springfield that may dramatically increase Illinois’ pension obligations. This could make the property tax situation even worse.

While there are state and local components to property taxes, this piece looks at how state politicians can address the issue.

Government consolidation

Illinois is not the most populated state in our nation but has far more units of government than any other state. In fact, it is not even close. The funds needed to support all these governmental bodies translates into higher property taxes.

There has been a strong and bipartisan consensus that duplicate governmental entities should be consolidated, and property taxes reduced accordingly. Unfortunately, the lack of political will has stymied these efforts.

Legislation should be passed that allows voters to consolidate outdated and unnecessary units of government via referendum. This should not be dictated by politicians but decided by voters who want to consolidate personnel and property to reduce debilitating property taxes. Audits of governmental units can be performed so voters make informed choices about consolidation.

Perhaps there are good reasons to have multiple levels of overlapping government in certain areas but that should be a choice local residents make.

School district consolidation

Legislation also should be passed that allows voters to finally have the opportunity to consolidate school districts. Indeed, this recommendation was made by the task force appointed by Pritzker years ago. Should voters feel there is merit to consolidating primary and high school districts to reduce property taxes, they should have the opportunity to vote for those changes. There may be other ways to consolidate districts that voters deem appropriate.

Legislation on school district consolidation has been defeated by politicians in the past. This initiative should be introduced again so voters have the opportunity to decide whether cutting bureaucratic costs through school district consolidation is the right choice for their community.

Economic development

Vacant properties and a lack of economic development result in less commercial property tax revenue. That puts more pressure on small businesses and homeowners to fill the gap through higher property taxes. The Chicago Loop’s struggles show how vacancies impact property taxes and put pressure on small businesses and residents to make up the difference.

Illinois politicians should audit every rule and regulation, and every fine and fee, that hampers economic development and keeps storefronts and commercial buildings vacant or underutilized. They should use this audit to make appropriate changes based on their assessments. Policymakers should focus on filling vacant properties in Chicago, the suburbs, and the rest of the state to generate more property taxes through positive, economic development.

Small businesses and homeowners should not continue to struggle with high property taxes because politicians are not willing to take meaningful steps to address the issue. As state politicians assess their 2026 priorities, passing meaningful legislation to reduce property taxes should be a top priority.

• Elliot Richardson is president and co-founder of the Small Business Advocacy Council.