Category: Business

Nearly $2 billion in property taxes shifted onto homeowners from businesses over just three years, with a disproportionate share of the added burden falling on lower-income Black and Latino homeowners, a first-of-its-kind analysis by the Treasurer’s Office found. The shift largely resulted from the wide-ranging success of businesses appealing property valuations, called assessments, that determine their tax bills. From 2021 to 2023, which covers a complete three-year assessment cycle, business appeals shaved nearly $3.3 billion off the total amount billed to businesses across the county. More than $1.9 billion of that shifted onto homeowners.

Although previous studies have documented how assessment appeals shift tax burdens, the Treasurer’s Office study is the first to determine the resulting changes to the amounts billed to property owners. That analysis revealed that the percentage increases in tax amounts billed to homeowners were far greater in areas with lower-income minority populations. “This study helps explain why many homeowners have experienced sticker shock when opening their property tax bills in recent years,” Treasurer Maria Pappas said. “We hope our findings help guide policy makers in their ongoing efforts to make the appeals system more equitable.”

Key Findings:

• Businesses vs. Homeowners: Successful appeals by businesses caused their collective tax bills to drop by $3.3 billion, or 12.5%, while residential tax bills jumped by $1.9 billion, or 6.9%.

• Business owners appealed their assessments nearly 64% of the time, while homeowners appealed 27% of the time — with businesses winning far larger assessed value reductions.

• Business’ assessed value reductions surged to a total of $25.5 billion from 2021 to 2023 compared to $9.9 billion from 2015 to 2017. The difference is due mostly to larger reductions granted by the Board of Review. While business reductions rose, assessed value reductions for homeowners declined to $2.8 billion from $3.2 billion from 2021 to 2023.

By the Office of Cook County Treasurer

If you’ve ever voted, you’ve probably seen one. It’s a referendum, a ballot measure that can affect your property taxes. Simply put, referendums are direct votes where the electorate has the chance to weigh in on a particular issue such as a proposed law, a tax increase, a bond issuance or some other major political or social decision. There are two types of referendums — binding and advisory. The government is legally required to act on binding referendum results. Advisory referendums aren’t legally binding and are often used to measure public opinion before making a governmental decision.

That makes the binding referendum one of the purest forms of democracy. That’s because it takes the decision-making power away from elected officials and gives it directly to the people. While voters make their choices for government offices in a primary or general election, they also may vote on a bond issue for a new public pool, school library or other project. It’s a lot of power. But it’s power that’s often not used because many people don’t vote in referendums, apparently feeling they’ve done their duty when they choose whom they want for president, governor, mayor or county offices. Our recent study noted that eight different property tax related referendums were placed on ballots during the April 1, election in Cook County. All sought to raise taxes. Five of eight passed, meaning more than $200 million in bond issuances and tax increases will have to be paid for by taxpayers in the coming years.

Despite the costly financial stakes, just 18.4% of eligible voters turned out during the election on April Fool’s Day. In the municipalities that were voting on specific tax increases, turnout was low, ranging from 5.6% to 33.8% according to the latest results. The study also looked at election returns from 2024 and found that average property tax-related turnout was just 45.9%, even though it was a presidential election year. When we dug deeper into the data, we spotted troubling trends:

• Wealthier residents are more likely to vote. In the county’s wealthiest taxing districts, average turnout topped 60% but was only 34% in districts where median household income fell below the county median of $81,797.

• White residents are more likely to vote in referendums. On average, turnout in majority-white districts was more than 20 percentage points higher than in Black, Latino and majority-minority districts.

• Homeowners are more likely to vote. In taxing districts where 80% or more of residents own their homes, average turnout exceeded 55%. Turnout, on average, was just 30% in districts where over 20% of residents rent.

If you’d like to see the level of participation and results in your county, city, town, village, ward, township or precinct you can view the data and use our interactive mapping tool by clicking on the following link or by clicking on referendums in the Pappas Studies box at cookcountytreasurer.com. I would encourage you to do so, because informed citizens are more likely to get off the political sidelines and vote rather than allowing the few to decide for the many. Because what’s clear to me is that when less than half of all voters turn out for property tax referendums that’s not good for our politics or your pocketbook.

Mayor Brandon Johnson, the Mayor’s Office of Community Safety (MOCS) and the Chicago Department of Housing announced the launch of the Short-term Assistance for Emergency (SAFE) Transfer Pilot to help survivors of gender-based violence access safe housing. The program addresses critical gaps for residents of the Department of Housing (DOH), which federally funds multifamily properties who face barriers when seeking safer alternatives. The SAFE Transfer Pilot creates a coordinated response beginning when survivors or property managers contact the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline to activate the process. The Network then connects survivors with Family Rescue for immediate, trauma-informed support and safety planning while collaborating with property managers to facilitate internal or external transfers to safer units. Eligible residents may receive up to 60 days of temporary housing while receiving wrap-around services, including comprehensive case management, emergency housing, and referrals to ongoing services from Family Rescue. For more information on MOCS, visit https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/community-safety/home.html

By: Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi

Last summer, residents of Cook County’s south and west suburbs got a shock when they received their property tax bills. The typical homeowner saw their tax bill go up by 20%, while many experienced spikes far higher than that. Meanwhile, taxes went down for the average commercial property. This problem is not isolated to one area of Cook County. While some towns and villages have experienced larger tax increases than others, residents in every part of the county, from the northwest suburbs to the far reaches of the Southland, have seen unsustainable bill spikes.

At the Cook County Assessor’s Office, we have just released a new tool to show the scale of the problem. It’s available at https://www.cookcountyassessor.com/historical-analysis-property-tax-spikes-2020-2023. From 2020 to 2023, this data shows that nearly a quarter of a million households in Cook County saw a 25% increase in their property tax bill from one year to the next.

And if you dig into the details, the results are even more bracing. In many parts of the south suburbs, such as Richton Park and Chicago Heights, more than half of all homeowners had a 25% bill spike. In Calumet City, nearly 4,000 homeowners collectively paid $9 million more in property taxes due to these increases. The tool allows you to explore this data for yourself by municipality, township, state legislative district, and Chicago ward.

But we didn’t just put together this data because we think it’s interesting. Rather, it demonstrates what many homeowners already know: The property tax system in Cook County does not protect residents from large increases in their bills. In a strained economy where people budget for modest tax increases, I think that’s fundamentally unfair.

For that reason, my office helped craft legislation earlier this year to protect against property tax bill spikes. It would create a “circuit breaker” program at the state level. As the name suggests, this program would function like a circuit breaker in your home, stepping in to assist when there’s a large surge.

The legislation, filed as SB1978 by Sen. Patrick Joyce and HB3808 by Rep. Justin Slaughter, would credit homeowners for some or all of the change in their taxes. That keeps increases at a manageable level, ensuring that nobody is hit with a tax bill that’s much higher than their old one.

When I attended a dozen town halls in the south suburbs last year, I heard from countless residents worried about dipping into their hard-earned savings or even being forced to move out of their homes. A long-standing problem is becoming a crisis. There’s still time to prevent it, but we must move to create safeguards now. The circuit breaker program is one such safeguard. If you think protecting homeowners from property tax spikes sounds like a good idea, I encourage you to get in touch with your local lawmaker and tell them to support this legislation.

Recording artists could soon have more protections from artificial intelligence (AI) replicating their voice or work under legislation from State Senator Mary Edly-Allen and State Representative Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz. “We need strong regulations and protections in place to safeguard artists when people try to steal their work and pass it off as their own using artificial intelligence,” said Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville). “This bill was made to clarify existing law using language approved by both the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) and the Motion Picture Association (MPA).” As an emerging technological platform, there were no restrictions on AI models replicating a music artist’s voice before the passage of the Digital Voice and Likeness Protection Act last year. Without regulations, some organizations and even music studios have sought to establish a monopoly of control over their artists’ voices and melodies for AI projects. To give artists more agency of how their voice or melody may be replicated by AI, Illinois’ Digital Voice and Likeness Protection Act requires artists to have legal representation or support from a collective bargaining agreement when negotiating an AI project involving their art, and how they will be compensated for the AI replica. House Bill 3178 passed the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.

Casi 2 mil millones de dólares en impuestos a la propiedad se transfirieron de las empresas a los propietarios de viviendas en solo tres años, y una parte desproporcionada de la carga adicional recayó sobre los propietarios de viviendas negros y latinos de bajos ingresos, según un análisis, primero en su tipo, realizado por la Oficina del Tesorero. El cambio fue resultado en gran medida del amplio éxito de las empresas que apelan las valoraciones de las propiedades, llamadas evaluaciones, que determinan sus facturas de impuestos. Del 2021 al 2023, que cubre un ciclo completo de evaluación de tres años, las apelaciones comerciales redujeron casi $3.3 mil millones del monto total facturado a las empresas de todo el condado. Más de $1.9 mil millones de esa cantidad se destinaron a propietarios de viviendas.

Aunque estudios anteriores han documentado cómo las apelaciones de tasaciones cambian las cargas tributarias, el estudio de la Oficina del Tesorero es el primero en determinar los cambios resultantes en los montos facturados a los propietarios. Ese análisis reveló que los aumentos porcentuales en los montos de impuestos facturados a los propietarios de viviendas fueron mucho mayores en las zonas con poblaciones minoritarias de bajos ingresos. “Este estudio ayuda a explicar por qué muchos propietarios de viviendas han experimentado una conmoción al recibir sus facturas de impuestos prediales en los últimos años”. dijo la Tesorera Maria Pappas. “Esperamos que nuestros hallazgos ayuden a guiar a los legisladores en sus contínuos esfuerzos de hacer el más equitativo el sistema de apelaciones”.

Hallazgos Clave:

• Empresas vs. Propietarios: Las apelaciones exitosas de las empresas hicieron que sus facturas de impuestos colectivos cayeran en $3.3 mil millones, o 12,5%, mientras que las facturas de impuestos residenciales aumentaron en $1.9 mil millones, o 6,9%.

• Los propietarios de negocios apelaron sus evaluaciones cerca del 64% de las veces, mientras que los propietarios de vivienda apelaron 27% de las veces – ganando las empresas por mayores reducciones evaluadas.

• Las reducciones del valor catastral de las empresas aumentaron a un total de $25.500 millones entre 2021 y 2023, en comparación con los $9.900 millones entre 2015 y 2017. La diferencia se debe principalmente a mayores reducciones otorgadas por la Junta de Revisión. Si bien las reducciones para empresas aumentaron, las reducciones del valor catastral para propietarios de viviendas disminuyeron de $3.200 millones a $2.800 millones entre 2021 y 2023.

Por: Fritz Kaegi

Asesor del Condado de Cook El verano pasado, los residentes de los suburbios del sur y oeste del Condado de Cook se llevaron una sorpresa al recibir sus facturas de impuestos a la propiedad. El propietario promedio vio su factura aumentar un 20%, mientras que muchos experimentaron picos mucho mayores. Mientras tanto, los impuestos para las propiedades comerciales promedio bajaron. Este problema no se limita a una sola zona del Condado de Cook. Si bien algunas ciudades y pueblos han experimentado mayores aumentos de impuestos que otros, los residentes de todo el condado, desde los suburbios del noroeste hasta los confines del sur, han visto aumentos insostenibles en las facturas. En la Oficina del Asesor del Condado de Cook, acabamos de lanzar una nueva herramienta para mostrar la magnitud del problema. Está disponible en https://www.cookcountyassessor.com/historical-analysis-property-tax-spikes-2020-2023. De 2020 a 2023, estos datos muestran que casi un cuarto de millón de hogares en el Condado de Cook experimentaron un aumento del 25% en su factura de impuestos prediales de un año a otro. Y si profundizamos en los detalles, los resultados son aún más alentadores. En muchas zonas de los suburbios del sur, como Richton Park y Chicago Heights, más de la mitad de los propietarios de viviendas experimentaron un aumento del 25% en sus facturas. En Calumet City, casi 4,000 propietarios pagaron colectivamente $9 millones más en impuestos prediales debido a estos aumentos. La herramienta le permite explorar estos datos por municipio, municipio, distrito legislativo estatal y distrito de Chicago. Pero no recopilamos estos datos simplemente porque nos parezcan interesantes. Más bien, demuestran lo que muchos propietarios ya saben: el sistema de impuestos prediales en el Condado de Cook no protege a los residentes de grandes aumentos en sus facturas. En una economía en crisis donde la gente presupuesta aumentos de impuestos modestos, creo que eso es fundamentalmente injusto. Por esa razón, mi oficina ayudó a elaborar una legislación a principios de este año para protegerse contra los aumentos repentinos en las facturas de impuestos a la propiedad. Esta crearía un programa de “disyuntor” a nivel estatal. Como su nombre indica, este programa funcionaría como un disyuntor en su hogar, interviniendo para ayudar cuando se produce un aumento repentino. La legislación, presentada como SB1978 por el senador Patrick Joyce y HB3808 por el representante Justin Slaughter, acreditaría a los propietarios de viviendas por parte o la totalidad del cambio en sus impuestos. Esto mantiene los aumentos a un nivel manejable, asegurando que nadie tenga que pagar una factura de impuestos mucho más alta que la anterior. Cuando asistí a una docena de reuniones públicas en los suburbios del sur el año pasado, escuché a innumerables residentes preocupados por tener que echar mano de sus ahorros o incluso verse obligados a mudarse de sus hogares. Un problema de larga data se está convirtiendo en una crisis. Aún hay tiempo para prevenirlo, pero debemos actuar para crear salvaguardas ahora. El programa de disyuntores es una de ellas. Si cree que proteger a los propietarios de viviendas de los aumentos repentinos de los impuestos a la propiedad parece una buena idea, lo invito a que se comunique con su legislador local y le diga que apoye esta legislación.

Los artistas discográficos pronto podrían tener más protecciones contra la inteligencia artificial (IA) que replica su voz o trabajo bajo la legislación de la Senadora Estatal Mary Edly-Allen y la Representante Estatal Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz. “Necesitamos regulaciones y protecciones sólidas para salvaguardar a los artistas cuando las personas intentan robar su trabajo y hacerlo pasar como propio usando inteligencia artificial”, dijo Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville). “Este proyecto de ley se creó para aclarar la ley existente utilizando lenguaje aprobado tanto por el Sindicato de Actores de Cine-Federación Americana de Artistas de Televisión y Radio (SAG-AFTRA) como por la Asociación Cinematográfica (MPA)”. Como plataforma tecnológica emergente, no había restricciones para que los modelos de IA replicaran la voz de un artista musical antes de la aprobación de la Ley de Protección de la Voz y la Imagen Digital el año pasado. Sin regulaciones, algunas organizaciones e incluso estudios musicales han buscado establecer un monopolio de control sobre las voces y melodías de sus artistas para proyectos de IA. Para dar a los artistas mayor autonomía sobre cómo la IA puede replicar su voz o melodía, la Ley de Protección de la Voz y la Imagen Digital de Illinois exige que los artistas cuenten con representación legal o el apoyo de un convenio colectivo al negociar un proyecto de IA que involucre su arte, y que se les informe sobre la compensación que recibirán por la réplica. El Proyecto de Ley 3178 de la Cámara de Representantes fue aprobado por el Comité Judicial del Senado el miércoles.

Esta semana, Delia C. Ramírez (IL-03) a quien se unieron los Representantes Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Jimmy Gómez (CA-34) y Greg Casar (TX-35), reintrodujo el Acta de los Inquilinos del Derecho a Organizarse, legislación para proteger el poder de los inquilinos, Incluyendo aquellos con vales de fidelización, a organizarse. La histórica y progresista legislación ha sido ampliada para proteger el derecho de los inquilinos a tomar acción legal contra caseros que se oponen a sus derechos de organización. Como los sindicatos de inquilinos de la nación están cambiando el panorama de la vivienda, J.R. 3049, el Acta del Inquilino con Derecho a Organizarse espera amplificar sus esfuerzos:

• Protegiendo los derechos de organización de los inquilinos con vales de elección de vivienda (HCV) e inquilinos que viven en propiedades con crédito fiscal para viviendas de bajos ingresos (LIHTC).

• Ampliando las protecciones para familias de estatus mixto y las que no pueden ser elegibles para asistencia de alquiler a inquilinos.

• Conceder a los inquilinos el derecho de acción legal contra actos ilegales de los caseros.

Actualmente, solo los inquilinos de vivienda pública tienen un derecho de organizarse legalmente reconocido. Ampliando este derecho a inquilinos HVC y LIHTC el proyecto reconoce que todos los inquilinos merecen una vivienda decente, segura, estable y sanitaria. El proyecto tiene el endoso de organizaciones nacionales y locales como National Housing Law Project (NHLP), Leaders and Organizers for Tenant Empowerment (LOFTE) Network, Lugenia Burns Hope Center, Housing is a Human Right, Shriver Center on Poverty law, Metropolitan Tenants Organization, George Wiley Center, Housing Action Illinois, National Alliance of HUD Tenants y Baltimore Renters United.

Investment in 16th District infrastructure is continuing into 2025. Cook County’s Department of Transportation and Highways (DOTH) has announced updates on over 30 projects throughout the county. Within the 16th District, three major projects are currently active, providing increased safety and accessibility for both residents and visitors in the district. The City of Northlake, the Village of Maywood, and the Central Avenue Bridge located in the Villages of Stickney and Forest View are all receiving funding from Cook County to make improvements in street safety, sidewalk accessibility, water drainage, and more. “This investment will have a real, day-to-day impact on 16th District residents,” said Cook County Commissioner Frank J. Aguilar.  “Funding our streets, roads, sewage and other infrastructure is crucial to keeping residents safe and allowing them to access everything their communities have to offer. It is amazing to see the partnership between 16th District municipalities and Cook County work together to provide improvements to our communities. I’d like to thank Superintendent Killen and all local officials who helped make this possible.” Projects include:

Village of Maywood – Work will take place on Harrison Street on 21st Avenue, 9th Avenue, and 1st Avenue. The improvements include Hot Mix Asphalt pavement patching.

Central Avenue Bridge – The Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways (DoTH) initiated the rehabilitation of the Central Avenue Bridge that spans over the Sanitary & Ship Canal near the western border of Chicago and travels through the Villages of Stickney and Forest View. This four-lane, 0.71 mile-long bridge serves many neighboring industrial sites and provides a vital connection to Interstate 55 and Midway Airport. The scope of this project includes full replacement of the bridge deck, repairing the steel girders and concrete piers, and re-painting the bridge girders. These improvements will bring the bridge to a state of good repair and support continued serviceability to freight movement in the region. The project is being funded by DoTH using Rebuild Illinois bond funds. Construction began in July 2023.