Home Rule Defeated In Rockford
Table of Content
Rockford naturally qualified in 1970 due to its population, but a referendum removed home-rule status in 1983. “With home rule, we have a one and a quarter sales tax that we have added on. That generates about four million dollars for us so there is a possibility that we could lose that four million dollars,” said Bukas. In 1970, Illinois adopted a new constitution that designated any municipality with a population greater than 25,000 as a home rule unit. In addition, municipalities can vote to adopt Home Rule, or repeal Home Rule if they already have it. “Illinois Home Rule gives unlimited taxing power to bureaucrats,” said Jim Tobin, President of Taxpayer Education Foundation .
Taxes by more than 1.5 percent, and property taxes, in some cases, have actually fallen. In some cases, Home Rule even takes away citizens’ right to vote on vital city issues and limits citizens’ voice in government mayoral and council elections. “Taxpayers are effectively muzzled, except at election time, and even then, their choices are limited,” according to Tobin. "We had a grassroots effort. A lot of people that aren’t happy with our mayor and city council, they came forward tonight, and this is really a referendum on the mayor." That’s why many smaller communities try to convince residents that becoming a Home Rule unit would benefit them. Home Rule cuts voters out of having a direct say on whether they want to pay more to live in their community, and almost always the result is HIGHER taxes.
RPL's Local History
Returning home rule to the community will diversify the revenue that provides police, fire, public works and other critical city services. It will help ease the burden on property taxpayers, who for too long have been responsible for funding those services. Proponents of home rule claimed that restoring that authority to Rockford would allow the city greater flexibility in raising revenue and reducing property tax burdens. Opponents countered that home rule would give too much power to elected officials in implementing new taxes and regulations. To attract support, McNamara and the City Council enacted provisions that would restrict their powers under home rule.
Effectively, it shifts decision making from the State to the local level, allowing residents to develop local solutions to local problems. These can include initiatives and ordinances in a wide range of areas such as building, zoning, sanitation, public health, civil disturbances, quality of life, safety and welfare. Since 2017, there have been at least 19 efforts to obtain Home Rule in Illinois communities.
“Let’s Give Voters More Credit” [Home rule] – 1/28/1983, Pat Cunningham
In one of his pieces, Cook says at least two aldermen that led the charge to use home rule status to massively indebt Freeport taxpayers before moving out of the city. Freeport residents then had to pay for projects those two aldermen thought were important. He says this is the exact reason Illinois statutes require referendum approval on most issues of public debt. They will have to come to the people for tax and spend issues rather than just them deciding it on the council floor,” Cook said. “There would be an impact on some of the services we provide because that sales tax alone generates about 18 to 20% of our internal fund budget,” Bukas told 23 News. Illinois bypasses the people of the community and puts all the power of local government into the hands of politicians.
Voters in Tuesday’s primary election rejected the effort to re-implement home rule authority in Rockford. WNIJ spoke with people on both sides of the issue about what this means for Rockford’s future. 4) Give city property to private interests without competitive bidding. The home rule ballot initiative was backed by Democratic Mayor Tom McNamara, who characterized home rule as a tool that could help the city enhance local control outside of Springfield politics.
Home Rule – 1999, Rolling Meadows, Illinois
That’s why students of government and political science have described the Illinois version of so-called home rule as the most insidious form of government anywhere in the United States of America. Home Rule allows Illinois communities with fewer than 25,000 residents to impose a variety of taxes and fees. Under state law, a non-Home Rule community of 25,000 residents or less can only become a Home Rule unit if voters approve the measure in a referendum.
Home rule allows municipalities like Freeport an increased means of local control in areas of zoning, building, safety, matters and public health. Since Freeport’s population is now lower than this threshold, Pretzel City residents will vote whether or not to continue with it in November. In 2020 the city tried to cut 1 million dollars from the general budget. Bukas says 17 jobs were lost because of these cuts, and that was just 1 million dollars. Compare that with the 3.8 million they’d lose from sales tax alone, and that’s more than triple the jobs they lost last year. Voting to keep this rule in place will occur on November 8th of next year.
Multi-family rental ordinances:
Conor Brown is Government Affairs Director for Rockford Area Realtors, a local affiliate group. He disagreed with McNamara and Eklund’s views on diversifying revenue. This funding is vital for the local government to continue its work. Fees can be charged to rental property owners on a per-unit basis which can add up quickly and cause local rents to soar. A YES vote on March 20 will return to our great city the control our residents deserve. While Rockford faces challenges, we have opportunities in front of us poised to help provide a better future for all our residents.
Until then the home rule will stay in place, allowing the freeport government to run as planned. ROCKFORD, Ill. - Following years of decline the city of Freeport has finally seen its population drop below 25,000 people. Home rule gives local governments the power to create laws locally without having to follow state issued guidelines.
Elected officials in Home Rule communities call the shots on taxes and regulations. They don’t have to directly ask voters for approval in a referendum. “I think our neighborhoods could be stronger; I think our reliance on property taxes could decrease with home rule, and we’ve stated that very clearly,” he said. A Rockford financial task force recommended putting home rule back into place to address the city’s budget deficit without resorting to property tax hikes. Finance Director Carrie Eklund says the goal was to diversify the tax base. Rockford lost home rule authority in 1983, which is why in the primary election there were multiple referendums for people to vote where the city funding would go.
The opposition campaign was run by Brian Leggero, McNamara's Republican opponent in last year's mayoral race. Nearly 54 percent of voters Tuesday rejected returning the city of Rockford to home rule status. They are just one more way communities make it more expensive to live and work in a community.
Like McNamara, Leggero organized various educational sessions to discuss opposition to home rule. He didn’t host as many events as Mayor McNamara but is pleased with the results -- especially compared to 1983.
Comments
Post a Comment