* We talked about this story yesterday, but the two big papers have picked up on it, so let’s revisit…
Bankrolled by Gov. Bruce Rauner, Illinois Republicans on Monday attacked Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan by raising questions about the property tax appeals business handled by his law firm.
The bid to muddy up the powerful Democrat came in a television commercial running in the Chicago area and aimed at re-electing state Rep. Michael McAuliffe, the lone city Republican in the House. His district covers portions of the Northwest Side, as well as the suburbs of Niles, Des Plaines, Franklin Park, Park Ridge, Rosemont and Schiller Park. […]
The new McAuliffe spot aims to boost him by demonizing Madigan, who wears three hats: speaker of the House, chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois and partner in a law firm specializing in appealing property tax assessments. The spot asserts that Madigan’s tax work is responsible for “saving his friends millions, forcing you to pay more.” It claims Marwig got her property taxes lowered “at your expense.”
Illinois Republican Party spokesman Steven Yaffe said Madigan is being used in campaign ads because he’s “never been more unpopular” and because “far more people are able to hear our reform message this year than in past cycles.”
* Tribune…
Democrat Marwig, a political newcomer, is challenging Republican Rep. Michael McAuliffe, who has been up on expensive broadcast TV with positive biographical ads for months. According to the latest ad, Marwig “thought her property taxes were too high,” and “got them lowered, at your expense.”
Appeals of property taxes are common, and you don’t have to be politically connected to file an appeal. But Republicans are trying to make the November election a referendum on Madigan, so Marwig’s property tax history is an easy way to try to draw a connection between her and the veteran speaker.
Marwig defended the property tax appeals. “Like many residents of the 20th District, I filled out and turned in a form to appeal my property tax bill on my own, without any outside help,” she said in a statement.
* Marwig didn’t mention it, or if she did her quote didn’t make it into the paper, but check out this October 28, 2014 post on Rep. McAuliffe’s website…
McAuliffe’s Message: Back to School Safety Tips, Property Tax Appeals and More […]
Maine Township Property Tax Appeal Seminar
Do you live in Maine Township and are you interested in learning how to appeal your property tax assessment? Cook County Board of Review Commissioner Dan Patlak, Cook County Commissioner Peter Silvestri, and I are hosting two free Property Tax Appeal Seminars for Maine Township residents. Dates, times, and locations are as follows:
Wednesday, September 10 at 6:30 p.m.
Niles Senior Center
999 Civic Center Drive Room 127
Niles, IL 60714
Thursday, September 11, 2014 at 6:30 p.m.
Park Ridge City Hall
505 Butler Place, Council Chambers
Park Ridge, IL 60068
The hour long sessions will educate taxpayers on how to file a successful tax appeal, provide information on property tax exemptions and address why property taxes go up when the value of your home goes down. Attendees may fill out and submit appeal forms at the end of the event. Analysts from the Board of Review will be on hand to answer any questions.
So, Rep. McAuliffe was enabling this vile practice of appealing one’s own property taxes?
I’m so shocked.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Merry Marwig’s full statement…
Mike McAuliffe is a hypocrite 20-year career politician who is so out of touch he believes local residents who appeal their property taxes are corrupt, even though he personally benefited himself from a successful property tax appeal on a condo he owned.
Like many residents of the 20th District, I filled out and turned in a form to appeal my property tax bill on my own, without any outside help – a process that McAuliffe himself encourages local residents to do at property tax appeal seminars, even though he has repeatedly voted against proposals to freeze property taxes. Just like when he lied about being a veteran, 20-year politician Mike McAuliffe says one thing publicly and does the opposite when people aren’t looking.
Unlike 20-year politician Mike McAuliffe, I actually understand the strain local homeowners are under to afford rising property taxes and remain in their own homes. But since just last year, McAuliffe voted 18 times against freezing property taxes, and now it appears he wants to get rid of the ability for residents to appeal their property taxes. The thousands of voters I have spoken to at their doors desperately need relief, but McAuliffe keeps thinking of ways to make them pay more.
Mike McAuliffe and Donald Trump are using the same playbook of distracting voters from the issues our neighborhoods are concerned about. McAuliffe is trying to hide his inexcusable record of voting to protect sex offenders, voting against funding to track sex offenders, and using more than a million dollars in campaign contributions from failed Republican Governor Bruce Rauner to try to sweep his lie about being a veteran under the rug.”
The first page of the attachment highlights a property that McAuliffe owned that had a successful property tax appeal applied to it. Further documentation is included in the attachment as well.
The attachment is here.
*** UPDATE 2 *** From the ILGOP’s Steve Yaffe…
Hey Rich,
With regards to Merry Marwig’s statement this morning, if you look at the last page of her own documentation, it shows that Rep. McAuliffe did not appeal his condo’s property taxes. Page thirteen of the document states that “Rebecca Dossman” was responsible for filing the appeal. Dossman filed appeals for every other unit in the building, indicating it was an action taken by the condo association, not McAuliffe.
The difference between Marwig and McAuliffe on this issue is twofold:
First, Marwig personally appealed and McAuliffe did no such thing.
Second, Marwig is directly funded by Mike Madigan, who profits directly from Illinois’ broken property tax system and refuses to reform it. It is ridiculous for Marwig to ever claim to be for lower property taxes while taking money from the career politicians and special interests that have driven tax rates up for decades.
Thanks,
Steven
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 10:23 am:
Yaffe is not responsible for making sense.
Yaffe is responsible for saying whatever needs to be said, no matter how embarrassingly ridiculous it makes Yaffe look.
Remember… when “others” want you to say something embarrassingly preposterous, it’s your credibility and professionalism they’re trading on.
“Congratulations”
- Soccermom - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 10:25 am:
I thought you were more politically savvy than this, Rich. McAuliffe’s seminars were clearly designed to bring in people who might run against him and put a brick on them before they knew what hit them. Smart.
- PublicServant - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 10:33 am:
McAuliffe has been bought and paid for by Rauner. That Marwig appealed her tax assessment is all they can come up with? Elect Marwig if you want your representative to speak in your interests. If you want Rauner to tell your rep how to vote, then go with McAuliffe. Pretty simple.
- Lucky Pierre - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 10:36 am:
The “vile part” is the the Chairman of the Democratic party for the State of Illinois makes over 1 million dollars a year in a good year appealing property taxes by filing appeals with the Chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party.
It is an obvious conflict if interest.
- Shield - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 10:44 am:
McAuliffe has a large family. Sure hope any of them residing in Cook never appealed their taxes. McAuliffe should worry about the appearance of his mother-in-law (Bette Morreale) getting clouted into an exempt state position at Revenue.
- Harry - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 10:44 am:
Unless Marwig used Madigan’s firm, McAuliffe should be ashamed of himself.
- LizPhairTax - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 10:46 am:
Property tax appeals are basically the same as being given wrong change at a store and going back to the counter with your receipt and asking them to count again.
That also infuriates Japanese businessmen.
My independent OR suggests that Marwig may have done this before as well.
Call me from the plane to Tokyo, Bruce. I will fill you in on what we know.
- JS Mill - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 11:12 am:
=“far more people are able to hear our reform message this year than in past cycles.”=
Reform message? When do your ads actually talk about anything but that bad ol’ Mike Madigan? They are pretty light on anything else.
- AlfondoGonz - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 11:16 am:
To all those here, I must recuse myself from any presence on this blog and any presence in public discourse whatsoever, for I, with deep shame, must admit that I have appealed my property taxes this year. /s
- Annonin' - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 11:25 am:
Well BigBrain will probably tell us that those appeals are okey dokey, but MJM is evil….show of hands who is checking which one of BigBrain’s cribs and what taxes are paid…hint start downtown
- This is hilarious - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 11:27 am:
Geez, McAuliffe is really grasping at straws here… someone’s nervous
- Lucky Pierre - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 11:28 am:
Property tax appeals are the same as a store owner overcharging you on purpose and the only way to get you can be almost sure to get your money back is to hire the owners brother in law to ask him politely for the refund.
- Rod - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 11:40 am:
The property tax appeal claim is particularly irritating. One only needs to read Ben Joravsky’s article from back in June http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/governor-rauner-speaker-madigan-property-tax-appeals/Content?oid=18036446 to see how absurd this all is. When it comes to property tax appeals there aren’t that many good citizens who just want to pay up to help fund the schools.
- walker - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 11:51 am:
Anger at rising property taxes gives rise to all-purpose political weapons. Doesn’t matter if the attacks make any rational sense.
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 12:00 pm:
So if Mike McAuliffe never contested his own property taxes, was that smart, or dumb? Did he really never contest his assessment?
- Someone you should know - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 12:58 pm:
UUmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, That’s how appealing property taxes work “Anonymous”
- 11 Warder - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 1:25 pm:
What nobody talks about is the other problem with the whole appeals system. Look at the large amount of money that the board of review commissioners in cook county raise. That isn’t done without a cost to us the tax payers. All 3 have raised millions and seem to get re elected over and over.
- Rosy Mulligan - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 2:15 pm:
If McAuluffe’s attack on this issue sways any voters, I would be very disappointed in the voters. Seems like a silly argument.
- Michael Westen - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 2:50 pm:
So, according to Yaffe, someone filed an appeal of McAuliffe’s property taxes without his knowledge or permission? Hmmm.
- My button is broke... - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 2:51 pm:
So are Republicans saying politicians should be pay more taxes than they are legally obligated to pay?
- anonymous - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 3:16 pm:
marwig apparently comes from a political family, so newcomer is stretching it. father ran for office 30 years ago, 20 years ago so she’s known this her entire life.
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Sep 13, 16 @ 4:31 pm:
It is fairly common practice for condo associations to file appeals on behalf of the unit owners as a matter of course.
While everyone can in theory file appeals regarding their property tax assessments, some of the insiders get red carpet treatment and big reductions. The individuals get pennies in savings in comparison.