DeLuca Looks to Address Cook County Vendor Property Tax Issues, Pushes Plan to Reimburse Impacted Communities Moving Forward

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – After property tax system delays from Cook County added unexpected and unnecessary costs on local taxing bodies, state Rep. Anthony DeLuca, D-Chicago Heights, is leading a taxpayer-centered plan to require reimbursement from the county if the same situation develops again.

“On the local level, these technical issues are adding more pressure to raise taxes on homeowners who paid on time,” DeLuca said. “Such unreliability is exacerbating existing challenges, and is why we need to create an appropriate recourse for impacted governments.”

Under DeLuca’s House Bill 5241, if Cook County is delinquent in distributing collected property tax proceeds to taxing districts, Cook County would then be required to reimburse the taxing districts for the interest these impacted taxing districts would have earned from keeping this money in reserves, as well as the interest affected taxing districts paid on debts incurred because of Cook County’s delinquency.

DeLuca’s proposal comes after Cook County was unexpectedly months late in distributing property tax proceeds due to vendor technology issues, causing school districts and other taxing districts to borrow money to cover for the time period.

“We can’t have school districts taking out multi-million loans because a third party failed to get the job done correctly and on time,” DeLuca said. “I remain committed to working with members on both sides of the aisle to develop a more responsible property tax system that better serves our communities and taxpayers. House Bill 5241 should be a key part of these comprehensive reforms.”

For more information, please contact RepDeLuca@SBCGlobal.net.