PENSION CONSOLIDATION BILLS WOULD RAISE PROPERTY TAXES WITHOUT REFERENDUM AND WEAKEN THE SOUND PENSION PLANS

By on August 22, 2019   /   Latest, Pension Reform  

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CHICAGO—The head of Taxpayers United of America (TUA) today voiced his group’s opposition to long-standing requests of Illinois cities and towns to consolidate more than 650 police and fire pension funds, saying that the funds are in such bad financial condition that property tax increases, without property tax increase referendums, would result, and that the funds still would be essentially insolvent. Jim Tobin, TUA president, also voiced opposition specifically to House Bill 1567, sponsored by St. Rep. Ryan Spain (R-73, Peoria), which would amend the Illinois Pension Code to merge all Article 3 police officers’ pension funds and Article 4 firefighters’ pension funds into the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) on January 1, 2021.

“Illinois’ five statewide government-employee pension funds have a staggering $134 billion in unfunded liabilities,” said Tobin. “Chicago’s four pension funds are struggling with $28 billion in unfunded liabilities.”

“Merging government pension funds would solve nothing, and the better-funded pension funds would see their assets diluted.”

“Illinois Governor Jay Robert ‘J. B.’ Pritzker (D) has appointed a task force to recommend changed to the statewide pension funds, but we know what’s coming. Cook County machine boss Pritzker orchestrated placing the Income Tax Increase Amendment on the 2020 statewide ballot, which would strangle Illinois’ economy with a graduated state income tax.”

“Almost all the money from the last huge income tax increase was plowed into the state’s floundering pension plans for retired government employees, and it didn’t even move the needle. If boss Pritzker succeeds in fooling voters into approving his income tax increase amendment, even that crushing tax hike would not solve the state pension crisis.”

“To be clear: It is impossible for the state to tax its way out of the state’s pension fund crisis. The pension funds are too far gone.”

“The only solution is to place all newly-hired government employees in 401(k) retirement plans, and, if necessary, place the worst of the present pension plans into bankruptcy.”

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Greedy Democrats Pass Graduated Income Tax Increase Amendment

By on May 28, 2019   /   Blog  
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SPRINGFIELD–Illinois House Democrats on Memorial Day honored the dead by pushing their scheme to tax the life out of the state. Democrats, and only Democrats, pushed a constitutional amendment out of the Illinois House, and on to the statewide ballot. All 44 Republicans in the house voted against the bill, and one lone indecisive Democrat cast no vote at all. The measure will be on the November 3, 2020 general election ballot.

“Democrats came into office promising to tax the hell out of people, and now they are one step closer to their goal,” said Jim Tobin, President of Taxpayers United of America (TUA). “What they don’t get, is that passing the Graduated Income Tax Increase in Springfield was the easy part. If they think they can ram the income tax increase past voters they are mistaken.” 


“Taxpayers will have an opportunity to kick these tax raisers out of office in the March primary,” said Tobin. “On March 17, 2020 every tax thieving Illinois House Representative will stand for reelection, and I encourage every taxpayer to vote.”

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JAIL PRITZKER, FREE TAXPAYERS!

By on April 24, 2019   /   IL, Illinois, Items of Interest, Latest  

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Ill. Gov. Jay Robert  “J. B.” Pritzker, the corpulent con-man acting on behalf of Chicago’s Democrat political machine, could find himself sharing a jail cell with former Ill. Gov. Rod Blagojevich as a result of a federal criminal investigation into a dubious residential property tax appeal, according to WBEZ Chicago Public Radio.


It seems that Pritzker, his wife and his brother-in-law are under federal criminal investigation for a dubious residential property tax appeal. According to WBEZ, the probe, which has not been revealed publicly until now, began last October and remains active.


The billionaire Pritzker and his wife may face a serious legal threat arising from their controversial pursuit of a property tax break on a 126-year-old mansion they purchased next to their Gold Coast home.


According to the WBEZ report, a Cook County inspector general’s report found Pritzker directed workers to remove all toilets from the mansion in order to have it declared “uninhabitable,” which gave the Pritzkers a huge property tax break. The report also found that the governor’s brother-in-law, Thomas J. Muenster, made “false representations” on tax appeal documents. That amounted to a “scheme to defraud” taxpayers out of more than $331,000.


The Chicago Sun-Times published news of a confidential memo from Cook County Inspector General Patrick Blanchard. The report found the Pritzkers had caused the residence they had purchased next to their home to fall into disrepair, in part, by removing its toilets in October 2015 in order to lower the home’s property taxes by having it declared “vacant and uninhabitable.”


On that basis, the Pritzkers’ lawyers persuaded then-Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios’ office to lower the home’s market value from more than $6.25 million to slightly less than $1.08 million. That ultimately led to a dramatically lower property tax bill for the mansion.


“It’s ironic that Pritzker allegedly planned to defraud taxpayers out of more than $331,000 for his benefit while he is pushing to change the state income tax to a graduated income tax,” said Jim Tobin, president of Taxpayers United of Illinois (TUA). “Pritzker’s graduated income tax increase amendment would steal billions from the state’s most productive citizens to fund lavish, unnecessary government pensions.”


“This man has no conscience. The way things are going, he may end up in a residence provided by the state, and he won’t have to worry about property taxes.”

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