A 'no' vote, and your Harper bill shrinks

I've received robocalls, social media messages and printed materials encouraging me to vote in favor of a new referendum that will allow Harper College to borrow $180 million to fund a variety of campus improvements. I'm told this will cost me, the taxpayer, nothing - my taxes will not go up if the referendum is approved. What's not to like about this? It's like a free lunch. I'll explain.

From its beginnings, 50 years ago, Harper was and is a great community resource. Taxpayers and others have acknowledged Harper's importance by rewarding the college with hundreds of millions of dollars in tax and other forms of monetary support. If you've been on the campus lately, it looks great.

The reason Harper's offer resembles a "free lunch" is that, in 2020, it will pay off a capital bond issue from 2000 - and raised your tax bill then to pay it off. With the bond issue soon paid off, the tax increase is no longer needed.

Happily, if the referendum passes, taxes will stay about the same. The college will get more stuff and you pay no new taxes. But, if the 2018 referendum doesn't pass, your property taxes will be reduced.

It's disappointing that the college did sense voter frustration with endless tax increases and did not give taxpayers a rare opportunity to see their taxes reduced - even by a modest about. Alas, the community now needs to tell Harper "We love ya, but cap spending and don't put another $180 million on the credit card that we have to pay off."

Controlling taxation creep has to start somewhere and this is a place to start.

It's your choice: Vote "yes" and your tax bill from Harper remains the same; vote "no" and your tax bill from Harper goes down.

Charles F. Falk

Schaumburg