The bipartisan Property Tax Relief Task Force, which first convened and organized itself on August 12, held its first hearing on August 29. The Task Force heard from the Department of Revenue (IDOR) on the current Illinois property tax system that levies taxes from 5,675,466 enumerated parcels of Illinois property that have an equalized assessed value (EAV) of more than $352 billion. As Illinois property owners and property taxpayers know, EAV values can differ in complex ways from market values, and can differ from the value that any parcel of property had when it last changed hands.

IDOR reported this week that from this $352 billion in assessed EAV, 6,047 separate taxing bodies try to extract more than $30.8 billion per year. Well more than half of this total Illinois extension goes to Illinois’ public school districts. Municipalities, special districts, counties, and tax increment financing (TIF) districts also demand large shares of the total extension.

The Property Tax Relief Task Force has been asked to examine the root causes of high property taxes in communities across the state, and to look at other states’ legislative solutions to reduce property tax burdens in the short term and the long term. The Task Force has been asked to generate two reports – an initial report within 90 days of convening, and a final report by December 31, 2019.

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