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Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
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According to the article, the situation may not be as dire as you all suggest. Yes, as a percent of assessed value, Illinois has the second highest property tax rate. But on an annual dollars per capita basis, the property tax is only 9th highest, while income per capita is 16th highest – this does not appear to be a gargantuan disproportionality. A $500,000 abode in Chicago with a $10,000 property tax bill may have a higher property tax RATE than a similar abode in San Francisco, Washington DC or New York that sells for $1,000,000 and likely has a… Read more »
Ah….but much of the reason the rate is so high is due to the value of property going down. I recently bought a house in Peoria. The previous owner lost 15-20% on the sale. I paid about 3.5% property tax. As assessed value goes down ( and keep in mind the your home is typically a middle class person’s biggest asset….often with a large loan), government cost still increases so the rates keep going up. Why do you think this is “not so bad”? Because they can afford the loan for the house initially? You don’t think there should be… Read more »
I think that’s an entirely fair perspective to add. Not that the perspective we looked at it from isn’t valid, too.
Using their effective property tax rates, a $400K house in Minnesota would pay $3,700 less in property taxes than IL. So for JB Crew dying to use Minnesota’s progressive state income tax rates, where’s the corresponding property tax rebate?
You know how you can tell your state’s property taxes are high? When EVERY state that doesn’t even have a state income tax pays less than you.
Here’s a really good way to compare rates. Tennessee has paved roads! They have good schools! They have running water! Yet they have no income tax, and affordable homes. Put your own assessed value into this calculator. https://smartasset.com/taxes/tennessee-property-tax-calculator
Shush – really. I bought property there years ago an don’t want a bunch of pansy liberals from Illinois moving there and mucking it up like they did Illinois. I follow the city council meetings and am disgusted with the liberals streaming in from Illinois who already want more city services for the poor and homeless (who so far do not exist). It is like a nightmare.
From a comment on Zerohedge about IL residents moving, and I’ll asterisk out the curse words “And the Obamatards are moving to red states to f*** s*** up there too”.