By: Diane Benjamin

Agenda for tonight: https://d3n9y02raazwpg.cloudfront.net/cityblm/65c0e1b9-7cc2-11ee-852f-0050569183fa-d969cfc2-89f9-4a31-922c-c0ff80c0370c-1700256371.pdf

Remember being told local government units don’t set the Tax Rate? They don’t, but the documentation proves they know what it is going to be.

Start reading on PDF page 21. Your taxes are going up to fund police and fire pensions. The rate will go down because of the increase in Equalized Assessed Valuations.

This is my favorite line:

An increase in preliminary EAV will enable the City to capture an additional $1.1M in revenue, which is a 4.93% increase from the prior year’s levy, as compared to the overall 10.7% increase in estimated EAV increase.

Capture isn’t the right word. You will be paying more property taxes for a home that increased in value that you aren’t planning on selling. Theft is a better word. Pensions obviously can’t be funded with money the City already has.

People did protest their assessment, the City expects the final EAV will decrease by $8 million. Media will push the fallacy your tax rate is going down. If they don’t add your taxes are going up anyway they are lying.

Just for fun compare 2019 tax budgets with 2024:

Pre-Covid tax budget September 2019: PDF page 6 https://www.bloomingtonil.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/23595/637115760412270000

September 2023: PDF page 2 https://www.bloomingtonil.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/29754/638336660132530000

All of the taxes listed in 2019 are not listed in 2024.

Are EV’s that don’t pay Motor Fuel taxes but use the roads anyway hurting local Motor Fuel Tax?

What’s really fun is the unassigned General Fund Balance projected:

2019 PDF page 3: $25,174,486

2024 PDF page 4: $39,847,283

The City of Bloomington is stockpiling your money. Send them a thankyou card. Spending needs cut, property tax increases aren’t needed. They are destructive to the local economy.