CITY BEAT: HIGH PROPERTY TAXES CREATING BURDEN FOR MANY HOMEOWNERS IN ILLINOIS

     Property taxes are become a real burden for many residents of Macon County and other parts of Illinois.
Illinois property taxes are climbing faster than most homeowners can keep up—and there’s no sign of relief. That’s because, according to ATTOM Data Solutions, Illinois has “the highest effective property tax rates in the nation.”
     Other sources have listed our state as having the second highest property taxes.
     Whether we are first or second in the nation makes little different because it is not something to make us a place where people want to move.
     Regardless of what sources you believe, all you have to do is look at your property tax bill to know that it is sky-high when compared to what friends and family members in other states have to pay.
     I receive messages from subscribers to this newspaper who let me know that, even though they finished paying the mortgage on their home years ago, the property tax they now must pay is higher, on a per month average, than was their monthly mortgage payment, which included interest on the loan!
     About all who have contacted me have indicated if they were in a position to move, they would sell their house and move to a state where the tax burden is not as severe.
     The relief that many homeowners felt when they made the final payment on their mortgage has been replaced by the burden of paying a tax for the privilege of owning a home in this county and state.
     The annual property tax on our home increased a thousand dollars this year and several people I know, who live in Macon County, experienced tax hikes on their homes.
     During our lifetimes, my wife and I have purchased five homes. We have never had a monthly mortgage payment on any of those homes that was as much as our present monthly average real estate tax bill — the payment for the “honor” of owning a home in Illinois!
     I love living in Central Illinois and have no plans to leave, but property taxes (along with so many other taxes) have made it much more expensive to live here than in many other locations where former residents of our area have moved in recent years.
     While they tell me they miss their friends in Decatur, I’m certain they don’t miss the high taxes they had to pay to live and drive in Illinois. (Gasoline tax going up to nearly a half-dollar a gallon next month.)

     • MORE TAXES — Capitol News Illinois reported: “Giving almost no time for public review, Illinois Democrats pushed through a $55.2 billion budget for next fiscal year late Saturday, bolstering coffers with new taxes on sports bets, nicotine products and businesses.
The $55.2 billion spending plan is supported by $55.3 billion of revenue, including just over $1 billion in new taxes and revenue changes.”
Illinois Policy Institute responded immediately: “Just before its deadline, Illinois lawmakers passed a record $55.16 billion budget, featuring over $394 million in tax increases, $237 million in fund sweeps and $216 million in delaying funds.  Despite lawmaker claims of budget cuts, the 2026 budget increased by $2 billion compared to 2025. The Illinois Policy Institute found Gov. J.B. Pritzker has grown Illinois’ budget by $16 billion and enacted over 50 tax hikes since taking office in 2019.

Notable highlights:
• An effective $43 million property tax hike from cutting the state’s Property Tax Relief Grant.
• Over $6,000 pay raises for each General Assembly member.
• $13 billion in pension benefit increases from changes to the Tier 2 pension system.
• $171 million in gasoline sales taxes that will be swept from the Road Fund to pay for state employee health care instead of road projects.
• $5 billion less in pension funding than is necessary to keep the system solvent for future retirees.

Among the new revenue:
• $195 million – $228 million from a new tax amnesty program.
• $171 million from delaying motor fuels tax revenue transfers to the Road Fund.
• $237 million in fund sweeps.
• $72 million in corporate tax hikes.
• $45 million from shorting the state’s Budget Stabilization Fund.
• $36 million from a new sports wagering tax.
• $15 million from removing hotel tax exemptions from short term rental platforms.”

     • CHAMBER REACTS —Following the budget approval, the Illinois Chamber of Commerce issued the following statement: “At the start of the legislative session, the Illinois Chamber of Commerce was encouraged by Governor Pritzker’s proposed budget, which emphasized fiscal discipline, investment in education, and economic development, without raising taxes.
     “The final $55.2 Billion FY26 budget passed by the General Assembly tells a different story. It includes more than $350 million in expansive and punitive corporate income tax increases and creates new gaming taxes, short-term rental taxes, tobacco taxes, telecommunications taxes, and increased fees. This breaks the commitment to avoid new taxes and sends the wrong message to employers across the state.”

     • GOVERNMENT always has one solution to solve any shortage of funds problems — tax the people even more!
What we are witnessing in our state capitol reminds me of a quote from President Ronald Reagan: “In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”

     • CRAZY REPORT — John C. Aymer of Mattoon sent me the following email after my weekly “Crazy Driving Report” was in the Trib.
John wrote: “I read your article in the City Beat section, of the May 21st edition, about the near crash you witnessed and I have an experience to share. Usually on Sunday evenings, I venture up to Decatur to take my elderly mother and my sister out to dinner.
“I was going northbound on US 51. I had just passed Imboden Drive and was within view of the 40 MPH speed limit sign. As I was slowing down, I saw in the rear view mirror a car coming up very fast behind me and partially in my lane! Before it clipped the back of my car, it veered over so he just missed me.
     “My sister, who was in the back seat, caught sight of it out of the corner of her eye and almost screamed. It went past us like it was heading to a fire.
     “I didn’t get the license plate number but saw it was a white Chrysler 300 with blacked out windows and a Chicago White Sox license plate. “Since I have moved to Mattoon, I rarely witness such behavior and when I do, it’s on the state roads that go through town and the drivers probably are not local people. The wild drivers is one of the things I don’t miss in Decatur along with the ‘skunky’ smelling cars going down the road!”

     •MORE CRAZY!—Roger Peterson of Decatur is another driver who responded to the “Crazy Driving Report”.
     Roger wrote: “Your ‘Near Crash’ at the intersection of East Wood St. and 22nd St., reminded me of a near crash at the intersection of 1st Drive and US 51 on May 19. A grain truck-semi driving northbound on US 51 ws honking while running a stop light before stopping in the left-hand lane at Southside Dr and US 51, because two cars were in the right lane. Dumb! He should have stopped at the 1st Drive stop light and he wouldn’t have had to stop twice for he had to stop again at the southbound lanes of Franklin St. and South Shores Drive crossing northbound lanes before heading north and then he had to wait for cars passing him on the right lanes because he had to get in the right lane to turn onto Lakeshore Drive to get to his designation. Dumb! Dumb! Dumb!”

     • RAY ELDRIDGE of Decatur, passed away May 24th, 2025, at the age of 92.
     Ray was the co-founder of K’s Merchandise with his brother Kay Eldridge in 1957. He and his brother retired in 2007.
     Brian Byers and I talked about our contacts with Ray over the years on last week’s WSOY’s Byers & Co.
It seems like only yesterday that Ray would rent our address-o-graph machine for a day whenever he would mail out the K’s catalogs. We used the machine to address our newspapers back then. Ray always made sure that he picked up the machine with a truck at the newspaper on a non-publishing day for us.
     It seems like ony yesterday, but that was 50 years ago.
     Needless to point out, addressing is computer-generated today and so much faster — and easier.
     There was only one Ray and he left a definite impression on everyone he met. (His obituary is on page 20.)

     • I JOIN Brian Byers on Byers & Co. every Thursday morning at 7:00 for the “City Hall Insider”.

* * * *

FOR MORE stories and more “City Beat” and editorial comments, SUBSCRIBE to the print or online editions of the Decatur Tribune by using the “Subscribe” prompt at the top of this page.  You will find many stories and columns about Decatur and Central Illinois each week. The print edition is $50 for 52 issues (one year) and the online edition is $30 for one year.  The combo rate (both print and online editions) is $65 per year.  You can also subscribe to the print edition via USPS by sending $50 to: Decatur Tribune, P. O. Box 1490, Decatur, Illinois 62525-1490.