Whose Tax Is It

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Quinns, Daleys or Strogers?

EDITORIAL

Theres always two sides to every story but open the daily papers and youll see that the mainstream edia is loosely throwing around labels and mproperly giving ownership of the sales tax situation o the county.

In determining how Chicagos overall sales tax of 0.25 percent made it the highest of any large city in he country, you have to rewind the tape, flip it over, isten to both sides of the story and then give it a roper label.

But thats not what we see happening especially in the mainstream media.

Last week, the plot thickened as Cook County Commissioners failed to override Board President Todd Strogers veto of a partial sales tax rollback. The situation took a turn for the worse when an anonymous caller, uttering hateful speech, left messages on Commissioner Deborah Sims (D-5) voicemail after she voted not to override a veto of the rollback. For that, Sims was called a nigger bitch and the caller said to her, I hope to God you get f-AIDS and die.Sims received the calls last Wednesday.

Somehow, somewhere, this whole sales tax issue got muddled in the process and the mainstream media has had a lot to do with it. For voters, an explanation of how we got here in the first place is worth clarifying, stopping the action and rewinding the tape.

In June 2006, the Cook County Board of Commissioners voted to give pay increases (called COLAs) Cost of Living Adjustments to non-union and unionized employees. Everyone who was employed by Cook County received these Cost of Living Adjustments. Each Commissioner (there are 17 of them) voted for the pay increases, but at that time, a determination of how to pay for those raises was not made. However, Commissioners Larry Sufferdin; Anthony Pericia; Forrest Claypool and Michael Quigley; all Republican Commissioners, approved the increases.

Now lets fast forward

In November of 2006, when Todd Stroger officially began serving his four year term in December 2006, he was handed a half a billion dollar deficit ($500,000.00.) Stroger made cuts, ordered furlough days and ended up laying off county workers. He also asked the 11 elected county officials to cut their budgets by 17 percent. The only elected official to do so was Recorder of Deeds Eugene Moore.

In budget year 2007, fights ensued as to how to pay for the raises. The sitting president (who by the way never has a vote as to whats in or whats out of the budget) was publicly blamed. Its also important to note that the Commissioners determine what cuts will be made or if taxes are raised.

In spite of these facts, the mainstream media has continued to call the sales tax Strogers Tax, but why?

In reality, it was the Cook County Board of Commissioners who voted to raise the countys portion of the sales tax from .75 to 1.75 percent. Stroger has stood firm on the issue because of questions concerning the impact a tax cut would have on the county hospitals and clinics that serve the poor.

The tax includes a 1 percent increase. It is a Penny on every dollar spent, and contrary to what the media reports, the increase is the portion that the county receives from the OVERALL sales tax. The increase does not include certain items including medicines; prescriptions; groceries; cars and homes.

The overall sales tax is 10.25 percent and is broken down this way:

The State of Illinois receives 6.25 percent of the tax on every dollar spent which ends up being over 67 percent of the entire tax.

The City of Chicago receives 1.25 percent of the tax on every dollar spent while the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) receives 1 percent of the tax on every dollar.

The County receives 1.75 percent of the tax on every dollar spent which comes to 17 percent of the entire tax.

Todd Stroger holds one of the most powerful positions in the County. At the same time, President Obama, the Commander-in-Chief of the United Sates government, plans to speak to Americas youth by encouraging them to stay in school and to work hard in his position as President. For this, the President has come under fire. But for what, when other Presidents have made similar speeches?

When a Black president reaches out to youth to motivate them, he is labeled a socialist, not a role model. When it comes to the county, the media portrays it as Todds Tax but at the same time, when Governor Pat Quinn recently raised the sales tax on candy, pop alcohol and cigarettes etc. (anywhere from 2.5 to over six percent) the media didnt call it Quinns Sales Tax. (This was true even as Quinn proposed expanding the sales tax to include items not currently covered by the sales tax itself!)

Moreover, an analysis of the tax situation in the city is necessary where the sales tax is higher in the downtown area in Chicago mainly because Mayor Richard M. Daley raised the sales tax for people who eat in restaurants downtown; stay in hotels and who go to Navy Pier etc. Over the past couple of years, the City of Chicago has raised over 9 different taxes, taxing everything from bottled water (5 cents per bottle) in 2007 and property taxes were just increased again last week. With the parking meters; the shutdown of the City last Monday; and even the Mayor himself saying that the city will still be 600,000.00 in debt in 2010, why isnt anyone assigning any labels to Daley? Why isnt this being called, Daleys Tax?

Like we said, theres two sides to every story. When the President of the United States, an African-American wants to speak to the children, hes vilified and labeled. When it comes to the county, led by another African-American, the tax , even when it involves all levels of government its labeled, Todds Tax Hike.

Everyone hates paying taxes and while we dont like them anymore than anyone else, what we hate more is a doublestandard. Why assign labels to some leaders and not to others when the situations are the same? Is that discrimination, underlying racism or what? Were just calling it as we see it and if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, then usually, its a duck.

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