By Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappa
After analyzing over two million Cook County property tax appeals filed between 2021 and 2023, researchers in my office uncovered a troubling trend: the system shifted nearly $2 billion in taxes from businesses onto the backs of homeowners, hitting low-income minority homeowners the hardest. This study exposed a stark imbalance in how property tax appeals impact businesses versus homeowners. Over the three-year period, businesses shaved more than $3 billion off their tax bills through appeals, shifting nearly $2 billion of that amount onto homeowners. This wealth transfer led to a seven percent hike in overall property tax bills for homeowners while businesses enjoyed a double digit drop in their collective tax bill. Simply put, for homeowners the numbers are ugly.
• Businesses collectively reduced their tax bills by $3.26 billion through appeals, while residential property owners saw their tax bills rise by $1.91 billion.
• This $3 billion reduction in business property taxes represents a 12.47% drop in their overall tax burden, which was partly offset by a 6.88% increase in residential property tax bills.
• Nearly 64% of business owners filed property tax appeals, compared to just 27% of homeowners.
And when we broke out the numbers based on income and race, the trends were similarly troubling.
• In communities where the median income is below $50,000, property tax bills jumped by 9.76%, compared to a 5.22% increase in neighborhoods with incomes exceeding $150,000.
• Nearly 46% of households in high-income areas appealed their assessments, compared to just 10.95% of those in low-income neighborhoods.
In Black and Latino communities, it’s clear the system isn’t working properly.
• Only 10.85% of Black homeowners and 14.06% of Latino homeowners appealed their taxes compared to 35.5% of White homeowners.
• Majority Black and Latino neighborhoods represented the 10 areas with the lowest appeal rates.
That’s a problem because our study shows one of the best ways to lower your property tax bill is by appealing to the Assessor’s Office, The Cook County Board of Review or both. The study revealed that tax bills for residential property owners who appealed went up by about half as much as bills for those who didn’t appeal. So, if you receive a reassessment notice in the mail this year and believe it’s too high, you have 30 days to appeal to the Assessor’s Office. The last date to file is printed on your notice. If a property owner doesn’t appeal to the Assessor, or doesn’t agree with the Assessor’s appeal decision, the owner then has 30 days to appeal to the Board of Review.
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker had put a block on all those who had participated in the January 6, 2021, insurrection of the U.S. Capital Building from ever having state jobs. Pritzker stated that such people who had attempted to overthrow the government should not hold state government jobs. I think this is completely appropriate. The sad truth is that so many of these people were given a blanket pardon by U.S. President Donald Trump regardless of their character or their prior criminal records being taken into consideration. Trump just simply pardoned them all. Some of the insurrectionists are challenging being banned from state jobs in Illinois, but it is unlikely that these people will win in state courts. Realistically, what happened on January 6, 2021, was a very violent episode where Trump exhorted some of his most fanatical followers to go and overturn by any means the certification of the 2020 presidential election. These violent acts included kidnapping, harming and maybe even killing members of the U.S. Congress as well as then U.S. Vice-president Mike Pence.
Mi nombre es Teleisa Coffee, y trabajo como Gerente de Extensión Regional para Servicios de Vivienda Vecinal de Chicago (NHS) en el lado oeste. Mi papel está profundamente arraigado en la comunidad, no solo estando presente, sino generando confianza, escuchando a los residentes y creando asociaciones intencionales que acorten las brechas entre la vivienda, la educación y las oportunidades. NHS regresa y nos presentamos de forma diferente. Esta vez no estamos haciendo solo lo que NHS ha hecho siempre – estamos ampliándonos, conectando y creciendo con la gente. En este momento, mi enfoque está en la divulgación y la activación en los vecindarios de todo el Westside: Austin, East y West Garfield, Humboldt Park, Little Village y North Lawndale. Estas son comunidades ricas e históricas que merecen inversión intencional y apoyo a largo plazo. Nuestra meta es conocer a los residentes donde están, brindar acceso a educación financiera, consejería en vivienda, apoyo crediticio y recursos para compradores de vivienda y luego ir más allá al colaborar con organizaciones confiables que ya están haciendo el trabajo.
