paul osborne
Editor/Publisher
Some of the conversations I’ve had with some of my local readers over the past few weeks have revolved around increasing property taxes due to reassessments. To be honest, I was also a little shocked when my property tax increased by about 20% due to the value review.
Yay!
After reading this column, most people know, or think they know, that Illinois is disproportionately taxed compared to the rest of the country when it comes to group and property taxes. . The number of local taxation organizations is 6,963, which ranks first, and the property tax rate ranks second in the nation.
Many local residents who have owned their homes for decades and paid off their mortgages and interest now pay more in property taxes to live in their paid homes than the annual amount they paid when they bought their homes. I realized that.
If Macon County residents take a closer look at their property tax bill, they’ll find an entire list of property tax receipt recipients.
• Many of the complaints I hear about increased tax assessments are the City of Decatur’s fault, but the City only receives a fraction of the property taxes. Last time I checked, the City of Decatur received about 15% of the total amount raised.
I live on the south side of Decatur. When I started writing today’s column, I looked over my last property tax bill. Here is a list of all the places that benefit from paying property taxes. Macon County, Conservation District, South Wheatland Township, Meridian School District, City of Decatur, Decatur Sanitary District, Decatur Park District, Macon Mosquito District, Richland Community College, Mahomet Aquifer ($0 on this bill), South Wheatland Cemetery and Cooperative Extension.
My property tax recipients represent about 10 people.
The 12 largest recipients are school districts.
• As the region’s population has declined significantly over the past 25 years, remaining property owners have experienced a greater burden of funding government operations with their own tax assessments.
I have no intention of leaving Decatur or Macon County, but I hear from residents who say they can’t afford to continue living here.
I don’t know if it’s just him being irritated and taking out his frustration, or if he’s serious.
Despite discounts being offered to seniors, veterans, and people with limited incomes, property taxes and other local, state, and federal taxes are still a problem for many residents trying to cope with expenses. I know it’s taking a toll on the.
• One day last week, as I left the office to drive to Forsyth (mentioned in this week’s “Point of View” print and online editions), I couldn’t help but notice the driver of the car in front of me. I didn’t (completely coincidental). ) of North Water Street, was a longtime friend and supporter of this newspaper.
She didn’t know I was in the car behind, but admitted it later when I told her.
I’ve written a lot of stories about seniors being forced to go to DMV offices and take their driver’s license road tests, so I’ve written a lot about how well my friend who is over 87 can drive. I decided to look into it. (She must take a road test every year to maintain her license.)
I didn’t know how long I was going to follow her, but I was behind her all the way to Forsyth.
guess what?
She was the most competent and law-abiding driver that was on the road with us. She used her turn signals properly, obeyed the speed limit, and observed all traffic lights at every intersection between Downtown and Forsyth.
I was very impressed with her driving, but not at all impressed with all the drivers on that road who broke more traffic laws than I can count.
As I’ve mentioned many times in this column, Illinois is the only state in the nation that requires a road test every two years, and seniors like my friend have a perfect driving record since joining the company. Even if you have a license, a road test is required every year. The last time you renewed your driver’s license and drove with a perfect record for the rest of your life.
This requirement is strictly based on age. Although the majority of older adults have a good driving history and have never had a traffic ticket or accident, because they are older, age discrimination exists when it comes to maintaining the right to drive on the road. . You pay taxes all your life to build roads.
Evidence shows that states that don’t require road tests for license renewal (and all other states) have accident rates for seniors that are not much different than Illinois.
Please stop discriminating against elderly drivers. Treat them like any other driver and apply the same rules. Age discrimination is alive and wrong in Illinois.
The people we elect to serve us in our state capitals have the power to stop that.
House Bill 4431, which would repeal this policy, has stalled. Why?
• Small… I’m an early riser, so I like Kroger brand pancakes for breakfast. Pop three pancakes (packed in three packs) in the microwave for 1 minute and 15 seconds, then drizzle with butter and sugarless syrup for a quick breakfast.
I don’t know if it’s just my imagination, but I feel like the pancakes have gotten smaller.
I don’t have the old box of pancakes, so I can’t confirm the weight of the contents compared to the new box, but it just feels smaller.
When we checked with Kroger employees, they said they knew nothing about the changes.
This photo taken a few days ago of these pancakes from two different boxes that were listed as the same size shows a clear difference in the size of the two pancakes.
When you look at the new cake on the plate, it seems smaller than the old cake. Although I am aware that there are more important issues in the world than observing the possibility of shrinking pancakes…
• We are saddened to learn of the passing of Mary Ellen Burns on October 2nd at the age of 92 in Columbia, Maryland. (The obituary was published in last week’s Tribune.)
Mary Ellen and her husband, Tom, founded WXFM radio station in Mount Zion in 1984. Mary Ellen was president and general manager of WXFM/WDKR. I always enjoyed contact and conversation with her over the years until she retired.
• Join Brian Byers on Byers & Co. on WSOY every Thursday morning at 7:00 am.
That’s what we’ve been doing every week for the past 22 years. I always enjoy conversation.
* * * *
For more articles, “City Beat” and editor commentary, subscribe to the Decatur Tribune’s print or online edition using the “Subscribe” prompt at the top of this page. Each week we bring you more articles and columns about Decatur and central Illinois. The print version costs $50 for 52 issues (one year), and the online version costs $30 for one year. Combo pricing (both print and online versions) is $65 per year. You can also subscribe to the print version via USPS. Send $50 to Decatur Tribune, PO Box 1490, Decatur, Illinois 62525-1490.
