Say ‘no more’ Kane tax hikes
Taxpayers are government’s “bankers of last resort.” When politicians overspend and overtax in fiscally irresponsible ways, they rely on us to pay for it and it’s ultimately up to us taxpayers to say “no more.”
According to audited financial statements filed with the Illinois State Comptroller’s Office, Kane County Board’s ruling Democrat super-majority and its chairman have increased government spending by 88% in just four years, nearly doubling general fund spending from $66 million in 2020 to $124 million in 2024.
Now their so-called “solution” is to ask you, the taxpayers, for an increase in sales tax applied to your taxable purchases to generate a staggering $51 million in new money annually. If the referendum passes, inflation (due to this mandatory tax) will increase.
No doubt the folks who want to reach more deeply into your pockets will make the typical disingenuous “de minimis” argument … it’s only a $150 increase on $20,000 of annual sales taxable purchases for the typical Kane County family, including gas, diapers, hardware store supplies, etc.
This is what’s called “death by a thousand cuts.” This sales tax increase is on top of the board recently raising the county-portion of your property tax bills for the first time in 12 years — only two weeks after they were reelected in November 2024.
If passed, this referendum will increase taxes and reward politicians who have massively increased spending in only four years. My family will be voting “no.”
Chris Lauzen, Aurora
Vote yes on tax referendum
Over half a million people call Kane County home. We live here because we know that Kane is a safe, healthy and prosperous place to reside. We want to have a sense of safety and security in our daily lives. Public safety is a top priority, making life better for us and our families right here where we live, work, and play.
Public safety in Kane County includes our sheriff, the courts and the offices of the state’s attorney, coroner, circuit clerk, 911 and emergency management. It takes a lot of hard-working people to keep us and our children safe. Because of this, 71% of our expenditures from our general fund are for public safety.
Kane County has been on a belt-tightening budget for many years. Since 2013, the county has sought almost no property tax levy increases, leaving the current levy far behind the cost-of-living increases. Some dips in general fund spending around 2020 were due to money provided for COVID relief, which covered a good portion of our general fund expenses, giving a false appearance of big jumps in spending over the last four years. But don’t be fooled, Kane is lean and mean when it comes to saving the taxpayers money.
Kane County has a referendum on the April 1 election ballot asking you, the voter, to approve a 0.75% sales tax for public safety. This means you would pay an additional 75 cents on a $100 purchase of tangible personal property bought at a retail store. This tax would not apply to daily necessities like food and prescription medicine. It would not apply to big ticket items like cars or trucks. This is not a property tax increase because we know our homeowners are already paying their fair share.
Another benefit to this sales tax is both residents and nonresidents who shop, visit or work in Kane County are contributing to funding public safety.
Kane needs to maintain public safety funding to ensure effective operation of our public safety offices. We need our specialty courts to continue providing mental health services and prevention initiatives. We need to protect our children from abuse and exploitation, including child pornography.
My family and friends will be voting “Yes” on this important referendum. If you would like more information about the sales tax referendum, please visit our website at www.kanesafe.org.
Mavis Bates, Aurora
Kane County Board member, District 4
Share your views
Submit letters to the editor via email to suburbanletters@tribpub.com. Please include your name, address and town of residence for publication. We also need your phone number and email address for confirmation. Letters should be no more than 250 to 300 words.