Quick Hits – December 20, 2022

Quick Hits – December 20, 2022

Since truth continues to be far stranger that fiction in the post COVID era, my column to do list now contains 18 separate entries. So, let’s catch up on at least a couple of them.

Property tax sales are racially biased?

As we’ve previously stipulated here, the Illinois property tax system may not be “broken” per se, but it certainly leaves a lot to be desired. Not only has hitching school districts’ fiscal wagons to a homeowner yoke sent those unsustainable taxes skyrocketing, but it inevitably pits property owners against teachers in a silly pyrrhic battle of attrition.

But as far as the statute itself goes, it’s pretty straightforward. There are no shades of grey involved. States like Illinois consider education to be a priority, so if you fail to your property taxes, you will eventually lose your house to someone who does.

But that obvious simplicity didn’t stop two minority Chicago homeowners and two community groups from suing county treasurer Maria Pappas and Cook County itself on the grounds that the property tax sale process disproportionately affects black and Hispanic residents which “widens the racial wealth gap.”

While there’s certainly something to be said for the plaintiffs’ contention that the all-or-nothing nature of process robs them of any equity they had in the house, it’s not like the vultures descend the second you miss a tax payment.

Before a property can even be considered for tax sale, the owner has to be 13 months delinquent during which time they receive a slew of snail mailed warning, and then they have another 30 months to come up with the cash along with penalties and interest. That gives them 3.5 long years to get their fiscal act together or sell the property to recover any of that equity.

So, is the fact that 75 percent of Cook County tax sales occur in predominantly minority neighborhoods “racist,” or is it that minorities tend to default on tax payments and ignore the problem until it’s too late far more often than white folks?

The truth is the taxman doesn’t give a flying bleep about who or what you are. They only color they care about is green. And please tell me what good is suing the county and treasurer going to do? Both entities have sworn to uphold the laws of the state, so they have absolutely no discretion in these matters.

Do I think the law needs to be changed? Yes! Regardless of who the homeowner is, to lose $100,000 of equity based on a $10,000 tax debt is patently unfair, so let’s change the law. Pappas herself has been critical of the system and that Democratic Springfield supermajority should be more than amenable to a legislative solution.

That said, under no circumstances should the defaulter get all their equity back because it would render tax sales obsolete. Who would swoop in and cough up that back cash if there was no possibility of making a profit? And if no one has to worry about losing their house to a tax sale, then there’s no real incentive to pay your taxes and our school systems would quickly go broke.

Do I think the County needs to fund and offer programs to prevent minority homeowners from defaulting and losing everything? Yes I do. But only if they’re run by a consortium of local banks because the last thing we need is another ineffective bureaucracy. To wit, the current Cook County program to help minorities recover some lost equity is $22 million in debt and eight years behind on payments.

But to say the system preys on minorities promotes the worst kind of whiny institutionalized victimhood and only serves to reinforce the stereotype that minorities are somehow inferior and can’t successfully navigate this life on their own.

If I were black or Hispanic I’d be far more furious over that lawsuit than I would over any slur hurled directly at my face.

 

C’mon Elgin! Open the Lords Park pool!

I’m not sure which one’s worse. The city of Aurora, which governs by corruption and crony politics, or the city of Elgin, which frequently fails to govern as a result a pervasive fear-based CYA mentality that paralyzes the process.

Neither choice thrills me, but truth be told, I’d prefer dealing with the folks at Aurora city hall. At least you know exactly where you stand.

Case in point! After shuttering the facility for the last two summers despite the fact that no one’s ever caught a case of COVID outdoors, on the advice of parks director Maria Cumpata, the Elgin city council voted 6 to 3 to keep the pool closed in 2023 due to an anticipated lifeguard shortage.

Really? So, the park district can pour a cool million into repairing the insipid Festival Park splashpad, but they can’t put any effort into attracting enough teenage lifeguards to keep a popular East Side facility operating? Right!

Not only is a $1 million repair price tag on a splashpad at an overly busy intersection that caters to only the youngest children patently absurd, but throwing in the proverbial locker room towel over a potential lifeguard shortage is a preposterous proposition.

Yes! I get it! Considering the enigmatic vagaries of the teenage species, lifeguarding is no longer the prestigious position it once was, but it’s not as if this conundrum is unique to Elgin, either. That means I have to ask how keeping the pool closed for another year is going to remotely begin to address the underlying issue?

And that answer ain’t gonna change anytime soon, either. Municipalities either have to offer the kind of salaries with will attract the appropriate applicants, or they will eventually be forced to close all of their aquatic facilities. The current strategy of waiting for a fickle labor market winds to shift in their favor IS NOT a realistic one.

Why not shut the useless splashpad down and put that repair money towards increasing the average Elgin lifeguard salary from $14 an hour to somewhere between $17 to $19? Problem solved!

This kind of knee jerk CYA reaction – even in regard to what certainly is a challenging reality – is far too typical of The City in the Suburbs. It’s emblematic of the lack of leadership that starts with mediocre-at-best city manager Rick Kozal and waiting-to-collect-his pension corporation counsel Bill Cogley, filtering right on down to the rest of the municipal herd. This was the same “logic” that almost killed 2022’s Nightmare on Chicago Street, but once the citizenry spoke, Elgin somehow managed to get their act together and make it work.

And if the city can pull that one off…

The fact that I find myself in agreement with city councilcreatures Corey Dixon and Tish Powell notwithstanding, Elgin! No more excuses! Reopen the Lords Park pool.

 

5 thoughts on “Quick Hits – December 20, 2022

  1. The real estate tax thing has legs. I noticed that several western states have been sued successfully in Federal Court. Basis was improper taking and due process and unjust enrichment. Not race but try everything I guess. but when you think of it, it really is an unfair taking. Something i have never thought of even though I have been to many tax sales. Why should someone lose their life savings and be evicted for not paying a tax or special assessment? I mean throw them out take the taxes with interests and costs but give them what is left. And i am sure with interests and costs in most jurisdictions there still would not be a fair accounting of what you get pack. And yes you are correct the debtors get tons of notice, but some may not have a clue what it is about. Senility gets us all.

  2. It is always good to see a government providing evidence of fiscal restraint. In that I applaud the City Council of Elgin. $1 million down payment on homeless shelters or an eastside municipal pool. Not saying $1 million for the homeless is the right decision but at least the council recognizes everything can’t be funded even if it means cutting services to the taxpaying citizenry.
    And to watch this fiasco of building 50 homeless shacks will almost be worth the price of admission. The first $1 million (of many millions to follow) is only for the cost of the land. I can promise the City of Elgin there will not be a single neighborhood that will allow 75 (double occupancy allowed) homeless persons to move into their neighborhood. Suggest putting it extremely close to the police station! Directly related, I raise my city annual labor costs to 24/7 man the community center bathrooms, showers, snacks (snacks???) to $1 million annually. The City cannot expect a single employee to work the community center in the evening or night, so now we up to a crew of 9 and a supervisor for the crew.

Leave a Reply