Finance Committee Signs Off On Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s $94 Million Property Tax Hike Plan, Rest Of 2021 Tax Plan.....
Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s proposed $94 million property tax hike for next year cleared a key hurdle on Wednesday, as the City Council Finance Committee voted in favor of the tax increase, and a bevy of other taxes to help close a $1.2 billion budget shortfall.
The 21-12 vote by the Finance Committee signals Lightfoot likely has the votes to pass her budget plan through the full City Council, possibly as soon as next week.
The biggest question at Wednesday’s meeting was the mayor’s proposed property tax hike, as the Finance Committee voted on a $1.63 billion property tax levy for 2021. That includes a $94 million property tax hike, which the mayor has said will amount to a $56 increase in the property tax bill for the owner of a home valued at $250,000.
Lightfoot also agreed to a $10 million increase in funding toward violence prevention programs, for a total of $36 million in 2021,as well as an expansion of her proposed pilot program to have both mental health professionals and police respond to emergency calls from people suffering a mental health crisis.
In addition to the $94 million property tax hike for next year, the mayor’s budget plan includes annual property tax increases going forward tied to the consumer price index, although aldermen must approve those changes each year.
Her budget plan also includes a laundry list of new revenues from various increases or changes to existing taxes:
The budget also includes a plan to begin issuing $35 speed camera tickets to drivers caught going 6 mph to 9 mph over the limit. Some aldermen had argued the city should instead install more speed cameras to catch more drivers going 10 mph or more over the limit.......snip~
- Increasing the city’s gasoline tax from 5 cents per gallon to 8 cents per gallon, generating an estimated $10 million in revenue.
- Raising the city’s tax on cloud computing services from 7.25% to 9%, bringing in an additional $15 million in revenue.
- Ending the practice of sending rideshare fees to subsidize the CTA, and keeping the $16 million in revenue within the city budget.
- Eliminating a 50% tax credit offered to rideshare drivers to make trips to “underserved areas,” which the mayor’s budget team said does not actually create an incentive to provide those trips, and benefits only the companies themselves. The move will save the city $6 million.
- Adding 750 more parking meters to bring in another $2 million in revenue.
- Tying commercial refuse container fees to annual increases in the cost of living to create $270,000 in additional revenue.
- Increasing harbor permit fees and fines for $15,000 in new revenue.
https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2020/11/18/finance-committee-signs-off-on-mayor-lori-lightfoots-94-million-property-tax-hike-plan-rest-of-2021-tax-plan/
Now more people will be leaving the city and moving out of state. The Deviates got what they wanted. Mindless zombies voting for them.....again.