Legislator urges leaders to focus on relief for Illinois’ high property taxes

By Glenn Minnis | The Center Square contributor
The Center Square

(The Center Square) – With Illinois now being home to the highest property tax rates in the country, state Rep. Dan Ugaste is pushing legislation aimed at alleviating part of the load now being heaped on stressed out taxpayers.

New data highlighted by Illinois Policy Institute shows as recently as 2023, homeowners across the state paid an effective property tax rate of 1.83%, or in the neighborhood of $4,584 annually on a median-priced home of $250,000. Some argue high taxes are spurring a still ongoing exodus from the state as taxpayers seek refuge in places where rates are significantly lower.

“We’re driving ourselves in the ground and property taxes from what I hear is the number one reason people leave the state,” Ugaste, R-Geneva, told The Center Square. “We drive businesses out. We keep investment from happening. We are killing ourselves as a state.”

With most of the tax money being collected locally earmarked for local pension liability as opposed to essential services, Ugaste has introduced House Bill 9 as a potential solution. The legislation is crafted to set aside a part of the state budget for a grant fund to be given to school districts as part of a goal of lowering overall property taxes.

“We don’t need to be taxing our people at these rates in order to pay for good services,” he said. “We are wasting way too much money in this state. I have House Bill 9, which would have the state take over a lot of the school payments that property taxpayers are now paying without increasing state taxes. It would have saved $2.8 billion in property taxes this year and it would save $82.4 billion over approximately 21 years.”

Being home to rising sales and other taxes, and 3-in-5 Illinois residents agreeing in a recent survey that they don’t feel the value of public services they’re forced to pay for matches the high property taxes pay, Ugaste is urging more of them to fight back.

“They need to start holding elected officials responsible at the ballot box,” he said. “Voters need to start paying attention to what they’re spending and hold them accountable and insist they start reducing costs because we can.”

Over the last five years alone, data shows at least 420,678 now former residents left the state.