Mayor urges tax hike
Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl says she's urging area state lawmakers to vote in favor of a 50 percent increase in the state income tax.
Tisdahl told Evanston Now this afternoon that the increase is essential to be able to roll back state budget cuts that are scheduled to cut sharply into services provided by local social agencies -- many of which also receive funds from the city.
The state budget cuts also reportedly have brought a halt to some city capital improvement projects funded with state grant money -- including planned redevelopment of lakefront bike paths in the south end of town that were scheduled for construction this year.
City parks employees mentioned that project postponement Wednesday night during a meeting with lakefront residents at the Civic Center.
The Associated Press reports that Governor Pat Quinn wants lawmakers to vote on his plan for a two-year increase of personal income tax rates from 3 percent to 4.5 percent on Wednesday while they're in Springfield to work on the state budget.
The House rejected the tax hike earlier this month, although the Senate approved a higher, permanent increase.
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Speaking of Waste...
Has anyone seen the The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act road construction sign that was placed on the corner of Dempster and Judson?
It costs $300 each to erect these signs, nevermind the actual cost to create them.
And, cumulatively, it is estimated that the costs will be well over $2 million for these signs.
Oh well, I guess since we are spending $2 million on pig waste studies in Iowa under the "Stimulus" bill, I guess this is justified!?
Can anyone tell me where this construction is on Dempster (aside from the road work taking place way west in Skokie)?
Oh, and I would like to know how many jobs are created and more specifically, how many jobs will be saved on this one particular project?
I guess the cost of the road sign is a microcosm of the bigger picture of what is occuring in our country with earmarked waste starting with the $787 billion "stimulus" plan. Additionally, the amount of legislation that is being rammed through Congress (Cap and Trade, Health Care, Deficits, Company Bailouts, etc), begs the question - how are we going to pay for all this as a country?
The answer - massive taxes. Not just upper class (class warfare) but also the middle class, whoever and everyone.
So, looking at the big picture, city and state taxes will go up, but those cannot compare to the awful burden and invoice the taxpayers of this country will have to pay to support these questionable Obama programs which are grey in their nature and predicted results.
Honestly, is this what you voted for? I find it ironic we can criticize our local and state officials, but anyone in Washington is "hands off."
You are right to be
You are right to be concerned, Dan. In fact, we should all be outraged at the blatant, unrestrained organized looting of America underway during the last eight years - looting growing ever bolder with each successful heist.
First, we witnessed a breathtaking acceleration in military and national security spending accompanied by two criminal wars and the bipartisan trashing of the Bill Of Rights, all in the name of protecting us from nonexistent terrorists.
Next, the "too dumb to survive" financial sector convinced the bipartisan powers that be that it is "too big to fail" and was in immediate need of a multi-trillion dollar emergency taxpayer cash infusion or else the sky would fall. A few economically literate observers did see the coming of the Fed produced financial tsunami and the destructive futility of the ensuing bailout, but were ridiculed as panic mongers. The same insiders from the Federal Reserve and the Treasury who, despite the vast resources at their disposal, were so incompetent as not to see the economic meltdown coming until it bit them in their butts are now looked up to as saviors who will lead us out of the wilderness! Absolutely amazing.
Finally the latest financial scam - Cap & Trade - criminalizing normal human activity, will be a futile, forever religious crusade against something that has been happening on earth since the beginning - Climate Change.
What's been especially insufferable is that Congress is repeatedly passing emergency legislation written by special interests with absolutely NO ONE reading the bills in their entirety much less debating their provisions and presenting the particulars to the American people. The political class is absolutely indifferent to the impact of their machinations on the voters and taxpayers of America. Why should we as taxpayers and citizens be obliged to fund and obey laws that our representatives have neither read nor fully understand?
An excellent example of this contempt for us and humanity in general is the recent voting record of Evanston's liberal darling, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky. Last October, despite overwhelming constituent objection, she voted in favor of the $750 billion banker bailout. Most recently, she voted to continue funding the criminal killing of brown skinned people in Iraq and Afghanistan to the tune of $106 billion. Buried in that war funding bill was a $108 billion American taxpayer guarantee of IMF loans to third world dictators. Her reason for snuffing more lives and pissing away yet more of our money is the need to support her president. Someone should ask Jan why her partisan (street gang) loyalty is more important to her than her oath to the Constitution or even common human decency.
We will get off lightly if the consequence of all this accelerating, unchecked madness is only a tax increase. I'm afraid that we will live to see something epochal - the de-industrialization of America and the disappearance of the middle class.
the blame game
Breaking news....
The middle class has been disappearing since Reagan took office.
Free market, deregulation, tax breaks for the ultra rich, huge spending on defense at the expense of education, and on and on...
All have lead to the collapse of the middle class in this country and a ever-widening chasm between the two remaining classes, rich and poor.
This is not something that has happened overnight.
Blame Game
Hmm... who is playing the blame game - you just contradicted yourself with your reply about Reagan.
Ever heard of falling on your own sword?
It is happening.
The only difference is, the things we will blame Obama for will be catastrophic.
Well Said
MetaCynic,
Very well said and I do agree with you on most points.
I recall when the state of
I recall when the state of Illinois had a 4% sales tax and no income tax and somehow managed to get things done. Now we are being gouged with a 10% sales tax, a 3% state income tax and crippling property taxes and the tax eaters in government are still crying poverty! For years they eagerly gorged themselves obese on the taxes generated by the illusory income and property value gains made possible by the recently popped credit bubble.
A recession is the time when people wake up to the fact that the credit creation machinations of the Federal Reserve System have misled them into living beyond their means. It is a time when they must consume less and produce more. It is a time when both individuals and businesses must realign their priorities to the new economic reality of lean living.
Of course such a restructuring, as always, applies only to those operating in the Voluntary World where customers are free to spend their money where they receive the greatest value and the best treatment. In the Bizarro World of "public service", the gun serves as a substitute for the persuasion and cooperation of the Voluntary World. The crazed denizens of the Bizarro World believe that those from whom they collect taxes at gunpoint are unable to manage their lives and must be taxed at progressively higher levels - for their own good, of course.
Wake up to the reality folks. As circumstances force you in the private sector to get leaner and smarter in order to survive, the fat and dumb public sector will continue to get fatter and dumber. But then why not? They are holding a gun and will use it to get "theirs" from you! What are you going to do about it?
Throw them all out
Term limits. 2 terms and out they go.
Public Office Limits. Yup. No more promote them until they're too corrupt to get rid of. Give them two or three offices to be elected to, then out the door and back into the private sector and WORK for a living.
Now we're facing a 50% tax increase with huge unemployment, pay cuts (for all but the elected elite who can vote themselves a raise), and foreclosures.
How about cutting some of the junk and waste? Garage sculptures, million-dollar toilets, lakefront pretty-fication projects? Consultants that tell us what we already know- too much spending, not enough income.
Throw them ALL out of office.
and you as well?
Can you please stop making the same argument over and over under the 'anonymous' moniker. We read your opinions the first time around.
Incompetent elected officials
" Public Office Limits. Yup. No more promote them until they're too corrupt to get rid of. Give them two or three offices to be elected to, then out the door and back into the private sector and WORK for a living.
The result of this would be that we would have clueless elected officials who don't know how governments work. They would be dependent on their staff and the civil service to guide them through the process, or they would hire consultants to tell them what to do because they lack the knowledge and experience...or they would just run around trying to pass stupid regulations (Judy Fiske).
So what you are saying is that you want bureaucrats and consultants or inexperienced aldermen to run the city .
Cuts hurt kids
It's not only the tax payers that this mess will affect,There are special needs children that benefit from the grants, that are issued to deserving agencies that go out of their way to help children, and strong but struggling mothers who would not be able to live or manange if it wasn't for the little bit of assistance that they receive.
At any rate that this bill does not pass, and I as a parent have to sit, beg and struggle because America decided to spend money on war, versus the special needs people is the day when I sit back and know that this is no longer a country or state of Illinois that is worth living in.
I could no longer respect where I came from because Illinois and America have become liars to us, and that I should go live in Iraq where our money is going.
I am working, a single parent of two boys with autism. I didn't ask for my children to be this way.
America doesn't care about its own people. It's just plain wild.
Spend money on a war? That's it?
I like how this individual tries to blame the war for the reasoning behind a tax increase and the lack of funds. As someone who doesn't support either party, it's not only the war, but the bailouts (I'm sure we'll be getting that money back from GM real soon), the pensions, and govt waste. It's absolutely pathetic. In the good times the govt has more tax revenue and splurges - and then doesn't know how to cut back when the revenue isn't flowing so they need to increase the taxes even more?
At what point do people actually become responsible for themselves and not rely on unions or the govt for answers? GM is a great example of what happens when a company does everything for you - you simply cannot compete. The govt operates even less efficiently but can survive because they just keep increases taxes on remaining people who actually DO pay taxes.
This is not a country worth living? Seriously....go ahead and move to Iraq, I hear it's wonderful this time of year.
Talk to Madonna and Angelina Jolie about caring for our own people - apparantly we've run out of them so they have to go to Africa to adopt kids. Seems to be all the rage nowadays...
Governor playing the guilt card to get his way
I am sorry to hear that your state assistance for your special needs children is being threatened by Governor Quinn. Sadly, it appears that he is playing the guilt card.
When Governor Quinn resorts to claiming that only good, deserving programs for needy children and seniors will be cut if taxes aren't raised, he is not being honest.
We all know that there is waste and graft in virtually every state department and office. (Same for Cook County.) But instead of taking on those problems, Governor Quinn makes threats about putting seniors on the street and families with special needs children in a bind.
If Governor Quinn were an honest man (I thought that he was but he has been shameless in recent weeks), he would cut at least $50 million from the state budget, overhaul the bloated state pension system and work with the legislature to pass real ethics reform.
If he did those things and the state still needed money, I am certain that the public would be willing to pay a bit more -- but not 50 percent more.
Can you imagine any service provider increasing its fees 50 percent during a recession? Government shouldn't have that luxury.
Tired of paying for waste
Isn't everyone tired of paying for government waste? I have no patience for talks of raising any sort of taxes when I hear about paying over a million to a consultancy to perform studies and provide recommendations on how to develop downtown Evanston. Waste! And then requesting more money to pay for a sculpture to sit atop a parking garage!! Start with cutting wasteful projects or projects that can be deferred, and move your way to trimming city jobs and services, then on to city worker's salaries and pensions.
Public employees need to start making sacrifices now.
Waste not want not...
The money for the sculpture atop the Sherman Ave parking garage comes from grant money specifically for this project. It can be used for nothing else. If the City does not use the money for this sole purpose then it goes back to the State.
Please understand the issues before making inflammatory comments.
uh... and?
I think it's irrelevant where the money comes from, except ultimately it comes from you and I. Whether this is grant money from the state or coming from local taxes, waste is waste. Good god, people, we're all in this together.
and one more thing...
In 1935 the W.P.A. ( Works Progress Administration)was formed to create viable work for artists around the country. Yes, government (during the Great Depression) was spending money on public art projects. Some of this countries most emotional, historical, uplifting artistic pieces were created during this time. Imagine the audacity of government to try and 'kick start' the economy and get the country moving forward. And 1935 was much more traumatic in terms of monetary loss than today's financial crisis.
I wonder what your reaction would have been 74 years ago. Much the same as today I would imagine.
what is your point?
Thank you for your opinion. We all have one. But let's try and state facts when debating our differences on the issues.
Millionaire mayor urges higher taxes -- let them eat cake?
While some type of state income tax increase may be necessary, I refuse to believe that significant cuts can't be made before lawmakers dip into taxpayers' pockets yet again.
Our economy is fragile, more than 10 percent of Illinois residents are unemployed, and foreclosures in Evanston and around the state have skyrocketed. Anyone who endorses a 50 percent tax increase at this time is out of touch and must have plenty of tax shelters to keep their family from feeling the pinch.
With the Mayor pushing a 50 percent increase in the state income tax, I assume that she'll be backing a big increase in Evanston property taxes as the answer to all of the City's problems.
Guess that it's bye-bye to the middle class in this town. But before I leave, Mayor Tisdahl, where do I get my cake?
Somebody inform the Mayor; We're in a severe Recession
While the private sector continues to lay off more employees, the city, local, county, state and federal government seems to grow or at least remain stable in terms of employment and services. This despite the fact that Illinois now has more than 10 percent unemployment.
How many city of Evanston employees were laid off? How many D65 or 202 employees were laid off? Is the City Council making difficult decisions to cut back services and programs to balance the budget?
Are difficult decisions being made? Or, are council members, the mayor and school officials going to take the easy way out and just raise taxes to solve the financial problems?
Somebody please tell Mayor Tisdahl that government can't tax it's way to wealth. Everybody has to put skin in the game, including government employees.
It'd be nice if someone asks Tisdahl some hard questions such as does she have any other workable and creative ideas in how to balance the city budget other than supporting property and income tax raises?
How many Evanston residents have seen their property taxes skyrocket in the midst of a severe Recession? What do you think about Tisdahl's solution to these financial problems?
Bring back Mayor Morton.
Bring back Mayor Morton.
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