Latest Post | Last 10 Posts | Archives
Previous Post: Speaker Welch marks first 100 days in office
Next Post: Today’s quotable
Posted in:
* Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi on Twitter…
I’m opposed to Illinois House Bill 1356, which would require anyone who runs for the Board of Review to be a lawyer.
Our property tax system needs ongoing reform. But this bill would discourage reformers and real estate professionals from running for public office.
Right now, all three Cook County Board of Review commissioners are lawyers. We don’t need a law to make this possible. This bill would not apply to any other counties in Illinois. We should ask ourselves why this bill needs to be passed and who will benefit from it.
No other office in Cook County’s property tax system has a law like this.
Appeals from the Board of Review go to the Property Tax Appeals Board. There is no requirement to have a law degree to serve on the Property Tax Appeals Board.
This bill is also not the standard elsewhere in the country. In other large jurisdictions around the country, including New York City, Dallas, Seattle, Miami, D.C. and Los Angeles, there is no requirement that board members must be attorneys.
In many other property tax jurisdictions, real estate professionals outnumber lawyers on the boards that hear assessment appeals.
Finally, in the suburbs of Cook County, Township Assessors serve as ex-officio deputies of our office. This bill would prevent many of them from putting their knowledge to work at the Board of Review in service of taxpayers.
Township Assessors are some of the most knowledgeable people in the county when it comes to property assessments and appeals thanks to decades of skills and training. It’s a mistake to block them from running for this office if they aren’t a lawyer.
It’s a step backward if we don’t continue to allow real estate professionals and others from the private sector to serve in this capacity merely because they are not lawyers.
HB 1356 won’t serve the goal of a more fair and accurate property tax system. I urge @HouseDemsIL and @ilhousegop legislators to vote no.
I talked with some Cook County Democratic House members yesterday who were up in arms about the bill. Stay tuned.
…Adding… Press release…
The following is a statement from Commissioners of the Cook County Board of Review, Larry Rogers, Jr. and Michael Cabonargi on why they are championing HB1356, a good government bill in Springfield that would require Commissioners of the Cook County Board of Review to be licensed attorneys:
“This is a good government bill that will further professionalize the Board of Review. As a quasi-judicial body that sits as an appellate tribunal, the courts have established that filing a complaint with the Board is the practice of law. It is only appropriate that the Commissioners who lead the Board and all its work be licensed attorneys.
“As licensed attorneys, Commissioners are held to a higher ethical standard and subject to discipline by the Illinois Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission, another safeguard that voters clearly value since they’ve now elected three licensed attorneys as Commissioners of the Board.
“While others have contended that this bill will close the door to real estate professionals becoming Commissioners, it’s fundamental that the Board is an independent legal review of the Assessor’s work, as explicitly defined in the Illinois Property Tax Code and relevant case law.
“Finally, the notion that licensed attorneys can’t be reformers is patently ridiculous. Please see the ACLU.”
…Adding… Cook County Board of Review Commissioner Tammy Wendt says she’s opposed to the bill.
…Adding… The bill was not called for a vote today, which is the Third Reading deadline.
..Adding… The Sun-Times…
Late on Friday, we heard there’s talk now of rewriting the bill, which did not meet a deadline for third readings but is far from dead. It can be revived. The rewrite would allow at least some non-lawyers with good assessment credentials to run for the board, which would beat the current bad proposal.
But better yet, there should be no such restrictions.
Not unless somebody can come up with better arguments than we’ve heard so far.
* WCIA’s Mark Maxwell…
On the same day a Minnesota jury found Derek Chauvin guilty of murdering George Floyd, a push to end qualified immunity stalled in the Illinois House.
Democrats narrowly reached a deal on police reform during a “lame duck” session in January. The original provision would have ended qualified immunity, the legal shield that often protects police officers from liability in civil courts; however, that controversial proposal was removed in order to calm the nerves of some legislators who were uncomfortable with the idea.
“I was someone who, internally and publicly, was very adamant that qualified immunity should stay in the criminal justice pillars,” Rep. Curtis Tarver said Thursday. “I think that to not have it in there is somewhat of a disservice to the overall purpose of the pillar.”
“Individuals who either don’t come in contact with law enforcement in the same way that a lot of Black and Brown individuals do, or don’t know anyone who’s had those same type of interactions, I think it could be difficult for them,” Tarver said.
* Daily Herald…
For police trying to crack a tough case, one tool in the arsenal is deception — letting suspects think there’s strong evidence against them, even when there’s none, in hopes of getting a confession.
But an effort in Springfield this month aims to ban that kind of trickery when it comes to juveniles.
Senate Bill 2122, which has been working its way through the upper house of the General Assembly this week, would prohibit police from lying to a juvenile suspect about evidence in a case, or making unauthorized statements about any leniency that might come with an admission of guilt.
* WCIA…
A growing number of state senators are advocating for a ranked choice voting system where voters could rank their candidates in order of preference. Advocates say it would result in electing politicians who appeal to a broader portion of the electorate.
Public polling data from Gallup and Pew Research have shown an increasing drift towards polarization and away from a moderate consensus in recent years. Several legislative districts in Illinois are very non-competitive, and often see candidates who wind up running unopposed in the general election. But in a crowded primary field, the most polarizing or controversial candidate can sometimes win the most attention, and coast through to an easy seat in the legislature without facing a challenge from across the aisle, or without winning wide support from the voters in their district.
“The problem that we see is that the primary becomes the entire election,” state Senator Scott Bennett (D-Champaign) said.
Reforming elections to include a ranked choice format would require county clerks to tabulate votes for each race and determine if any candidate had reached a 50% threshold. If no one reached a simple majority, the candidate with the least votes would be eliminated from contention, and the clerk would count up all of the second preferences of that candidate’s voters, adding those second alternative choices to the total vote counts for candidates still remaining in the field. The process would continue until one candidate had won at least half of the total votes.
Barring a miracle, the bill is dead for the year.
…Adding… Greg Hinz…
A bill that would add some interesting new strings to tax-increment financing projects has picked up a surprisingly big head of steam in Springfield and is nearing final approval by the General Assembly.
Under the measure, sponsored by Rep. Jonathan Carroll, D-Northbrook at the request of Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza, TIF developers would have to begin reporting annually to Mendoza how well their projects are doing in terms of creating jobs and new property tax revenue, or increment. That way, voters would know whether a project in line for TIF subsidies is as productive as developers promised.
* Other stuff…
* Senate passes state and local tax deduction bill
* Senate passes bill outlawing restraints on children in state custody
posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 10:30 am
Sorry, comments are closed at this time.
Previous Post: Speaker Welch marks first 100 days in office
Next Post: Today’s quotable
WordPress Mobile Edition available at alexking.org.
powered by WordPress.
If progressives and democrats in Springfield care about wealth inequality they should be proposing and passing laws that helps Kaegi’s office right the wrongs of Joe Berrios not discussing mark-to-market living estate tax bills. The Property Tax Appeals Board actively undermines the positive changes he is trying to implement.
Comment by 1st Ward Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 10:40 am
Kaegi’s concern is the fact that he is not an attorney and in the future under separate legislation that may be a requirement.
I do not think being an attorney is necessary and do not understand the need for this legislation.
Comment by MOON Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 10:48 am
lawyers are why we have some ridiculous laws in the first place. NO WAY a property tax appeal board need to have a law degree, its way more important to have real estate and appraisal background than lawyers knowledge
Comment by trutheller Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 10:59 am
===one tool in the arsenal is deception===
There’s a real problem with creating a culture where public employees are encouraged to blatantly lie and make false accusations as a professional technique, but especially when they data shows that police interrogations can lead to false confessions.
=== a push to end qualified immunity stalled in the Illinois House.===
Institutionalized racism is a powerful thing. So powerful that folks who insist they aren’t racist will go out of their way to protect it without being candid about what it is they’re protecting.
Organized labor needs an altar call. Not all of your members would agree that some folks should be shielded from responsibility when they knowingly and intentionally break the law, but maybe we’re not going to see that when the AFL-CIO is headed by a guy that belonged to an organization that was infamously whites only before reluctantly agreeing to at least stop saying that on paper.
Decades after the decision to unify the AFL and the CIO, here we are watching a situation where black voices within the labor movement are being ignore to protect qualified immunity for police officers that murder. Why not trust a jury or a judge to make the right decision when someone is sued for their actions as a public employee?
Comment by Candy Dogood Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 11:00 am
=There’s a real problem with creating a culture where public employees are encouraged to blatantly lie and make false accusations as a professional technique, but especially when they data shows that police interrogations can lead to false confessions.==
Such deception is banned in the UK and restricted in Germany.
https://www.cato.org/blog/our-police-embrace-deceit-it-any-wonder-we-dont-trust-them
Comment by Shield Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 11:08 am
We’ve got your fingerprints and an eye witness, kid…You’re best bet is to plead guilty and take six months…if you go to trial, you’ll get five years.
A certain portion of people in jails and prisons across our nation are innocent…at all times…in America…the land of the free.
Comment by Dotnonymous Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 11:40 am
Question that might never get answered, what does Patlak - the only Republican on the Cook Board of Review - think about that proposed law?
Comment by Levois J Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 11:56 am
=Question that might never get answered, what does Patlak - the only Republican on the Cook Board of Review - think about that proposed law?=
He’s not on the Board anymore–he lost his re-election bid. For what it’s worth, I got an email echoing Kaegi’s statement from the woman Patlak lost to–Tammy Wendt–asking her constituents to oppose the bill (even though she’s an attorney.)
Comment by Wally Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 12:00 pm
==Public polling data from Gallup and Pew Research have shown an increasing drift towards polarization and away from a moderate consensus in recent years. Several legislative districts in Illinois are very non-competitive, and often see candidates who wind up running unopposed in the general election.==
And of course that’s related to politicians drawing districts to protect themselves.
Comment by Anonanonsir Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 12:06 pm
- Levois J - Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 11:56 am:
Patlak was defeated last year.
Comment by Shield Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 12:07 pm
Levois….
Dan Patlak is no longer on the board of review. He lost his race to Tammy Wendt in November 2020.
Comment by Todd & Margo Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 12:08 pm
The lawyer requirement would reduce election competition for the CC BoR, which, incidentally, requires those representing appellants to be lawyers.
Comment by anon2 Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 12:27 pm
“This is a good government bill that will further professionalize the Board of Review.”
“good government” i.e. good for city and county council members, State Reps, and State Senators who at the same time have their name etched at the top of a property tax appeals law firm see Ed Burke, Mike Madigan, John Cullerton, among others. What a joke.
Comment by 1st Ward Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 12:43 pm
So the goal of the property tax appeals board legislation is to maintain the status quo of wealthy white lawyers on the northside getting favorable treatment for them and their buddies from the appeals board while disenfranchising south and west siders with higher property taxes. Unbelievable - clearly racist legislation being pushed by the wealthy white “liberal” Gold Coast and Lincoln Park elite to undermine Kaegi.
Comment by 1st Ward Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 12:47 pm
== clearly racist legislation being pushed by the wealthy white “liberal” Gold Coast and Lincoln Park elite==
Last time I checked Larry Rogers Jr. Is a Black man from the south side. And the bill is being sponsored by Reps Tarver and Buckner. Also Black men from the south side. So…
Comment by Former Downstater Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 1:27 pm
TO be honest I see the lawyers being a whole lot more reasonable than the real estate people. Anything to keep the latter off the board.
Comment by cermak_rd Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 1:41 pm
Thanks for the clarification, it just shows how much I paid attention to that particular race.
Comment by Levois J Friday, Apr 23, 21 @ 1:43 pm