* The swing vote to pass the budget came from Commissioner Larry Suffredin (D-13th), who campaigned for state's attorney on a boast that he had "stood up to Todd Stroger's tax increases," and as of early Saturday, his Web site still quotes him as saying in reference to the budget, "at this point, I see no need for any increase in taxes." Channel 2.
* Suffredin, who long had opposed any sales tax increase, dismissed critics' notion that the hike would chase away businesses and jobs. Trib.
* The swing vote to pass the budget was set to come from Commissioner Larry Suffredin, who campaigned for state's attorney on a boast that he had "stood up to Todd Stroger's tax increases," and as of Friday night, his website still quotes him as saying "at this point, I see no need for any increase in taxes." Sun-Times.
* But a last-minute deal isn't going to undo the impression of many taxpayers that the board is full of ineffective grandstanders and the government dismally managed. Reader.
Blognotes: Cook County. 800 patronage jobs, at the very least. Fox News.
Joe Moore and Larry Suffredin. Two full-of shit politicians who will say anything to stay elected. But when when it comes time to actually do something, like keep their promises and vote against rising taxes, they turn their backs on their own words.
Update: Statement regarding Cook County budget From Jerry Roper, President and CEO, Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce.
"Even before this vote, the people and businesses in the Chicago region were shouldering more than $800 million in new taxes this year, and now will pay millions more to support an incredibly inefficient County government.
Chicago now has the unfortunate notoriety of having the highest sales tax in the country, and our region will now be a more expensive place to visit, live, work and operate a business. This impacts our jobs climate and makes our region more expensive and less competitive as our country lies on the brink of recession.
There was a true opportunity this year to build on the reforms initiated last year. Cook County officials squandered this opportunity, and instead will be adding hundreds of new employees to the county payroll. The people of our region should be outraged".
Top National Sales Tax Rates:
Chicago 10.25% (includes 1% Cook County increase)
Memphis 9.25%
New Orleans 9.0%
New York City 8.375%
Los Angeles 8.25%
Overview of Tax Increases in the Chicago region:
November 2007: City of Chicago tax/fee increases - $270 million
January 2008: CTA/RTA .25% Sales and Real Estate Transfer Tax increases - $530 million
February 2008: Cook County 1% Sales Tax increase - $425 million
Talk about screwing us without the Vaseline.
51 comments:
I go to bed and wake up paying more taxes.
Larry is no reformer. He's a Stroger/Daley stooge.
This increase is a slap in the face to poor working people. We can barely make it now with all the increase we keep getting thrust at us. If you all keep up increasing everything for the working people, we might just decide Chicago is not the place for us, because it is turning into a rich man's city, if most of us do leave I feel sorry for those who do not, because you will once again stick it to them..Chicago is becoming a sad and sorry place to live, if you can call it living.
HE SOLD OUT -WAHT A WEEKLING- GOOD THING HE LOST THE STATES ATORNEY RACE-
NOW HE AND STOGERS ARE BIRDS OF A FEATHER FOR SURE-
The sales tax increase will have an adverse effect on CROOK County. Stroger and his cast of idiots don't realize that people will go to collar counties to make purchases especially in a time of economic uncertainty that this country faces right now. sure, not all people will go outside of the county, but some will so i highly doubt it will generate as much as the board thinks. These knuckleheads just don't get it....you can not keep hitting people in the pocketbooks
Shit, what a jerk. To think I voted for this asshole. I feel like a idiot today.
We've just had our taxes raised over 100 million dollars in less than 3 months. I'm moving out of Crook County.
i'm shocked, just shocked.
Anonymous said... "I feel like a idiot today".
You damn well should! Actually 3819 49th ward voters should feel like idiots.
There's not much left to tax. We should be safe from here on out.
Larry doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground. Residents are fleeing the county in droves.
In 2000, the Cook County population was 5,376,741.
In 2006, the population was 5,288,655. Roughly, a half million people left the county in 6 years.
Pray that we DO NOT get the Olyimpic Games! Because once the games and fanfare are over the city and county will have to stick it to the tax payers to make up for the the short falls that will arise, I don't care what bs the committe to bring the games to Chicago spins! We all know the lies we are and have ben feed for the last 20-plus years. Just pray another city like RIO gets the games!
Have all the Cook County commissioners lost their minds allowing this inexperienced and money hungry brat to continue to rip off the tax payers of this county? What is happening to all the money from before when you raised property and sales tax? Is it me or are we in a recession right now? It's bad enough when the city hikes up the fees for services you can barely receive, now the county wants to rape tax payers. All of this greedy madness has to come to an end. If the money was utilized appropiately, instead always fattening some county employee pocket that halfway do the job, then tax payers wouldn't feel robbed at the gas pump, hospitals, grocery stores etc. To all that read this, we need to bring the corruption of Chicago and Cook County to an end.
You know what we all need to do is move the H*** out of this city and see how much taxes they can get out of an empty city. This increase continues to show the blatant disrespect our city, state and county officials have for the taxpayers.
With the tax increase all of the payrollers should be safe and enough for the County Board a pay raise-
I luv Larry
Calling Suffy weak as one ply tp is giving one ply tp a bad rap.
How can you guys make jokes about this situation. I find the rise in taxes disturbing. I'm on a fixed income. This is no joke to me. I need help or I'm going to have to move somewhere else.
Fuck these fucking fucks!
I WANTED a Crook County shutdown. Then we'd have seen exactly how completely unneeded nearly that entire slice of government is.
Fuckers!
At least we don't live in Evanston.
It's just sickening.
I'd say let's vote these con artists out of office. But that never works. Voters are just too stupid to understand.
Cook Country residents, enjoy the fruits of nepotism and corruption.
You idiots who supported Todd Stroger in the 2006 primary should have voted for Forrest Claypool ... But NO, you voted for the machine HACK's son, another machine hack!
This filthy political machine in Chicago represents the dirtiest of politics. Corruption is the main formation. There is just too much money being swindled from the public, the temptation is too great, more politicians need to go to jail or suffer more severe consequences. The pensions, medical plans, and salaries the taxpayers allow these political thieves are beyond what is reasonable. All of these services and perks are on the overtaxed taxpayers back. I resent paying for a crooked government that spends the majority of its time in bureaucratic political theatre. To compound insult to injury; I further resent paying services for illegal aliens while our seniors, veterans and homeless need help first. This is a government that meets and rules more for themselves and illegal aliens than the people they’re supposed to represent. Our jobs are gone due to groups like the Bilderbergs, and the CFR. Our kids are learning Spanish and Ebonics as opposed to advanced calculus. The table is set for DISASTER. I am also disgusted with the attack on our civil liberties in the name of terror. There are too many cameras, too much police brutality.
Agree on the matter of the Olympic Games... just one more "vanity" project that will be a massive net loss to the taxpayers, in addition to disrupting the lives of thousands of Washington Park residents
Say NO to more monument-building.
Say NO to more stadiums and events that are nothing but bread- especially bread- and circuses for the well-healed at the expense of the non-included.
Say NO to more corporate welfare, whether TIFs or tax abatements.
The necessary funding for both operations and capital improvements at the CTA, and the funds necessary to repair the rest of our failing infrastructure, could easily have been funded with no tax increase were not billions being diverted from the public coffers and into the pockets of Da Mare's cronies and those of our aldercreatures.
Fagus is safe to keep his patronage $130K job for another couple years.
I am willing to bet that at this time next year, we'll see the same news. There will be more hand-wringing about where the money will come from, more tantrums, and threats. I've said it previously and I'll say it again: I will not buy anything from Chicago. I will go to dinner in the suburbs, and stay away from the city. You think taxes are high now. Wait until the summer games - if Chicago gets it - and you'll pay fees that you didn't know could be attached to anything. I am surprised that I have not been required to hang a transponder on my car so the county can tax me when I breach the county boundary! Oops! I guess I gave them an idea. Sorry about that.
I'M MOVING OUT OF CROOK COUNTY!
Larry pulled a chickenshit move, true dat. But Fagus has been happily sucking Stroger's dick for many years. John Stroger, Todd Stroger, they could always count on Fagus.
I agree. They should've let the bloated county government shut down. No one's got any backbone.
I'm so glad Bush is giving me a federal tax refund! I'll need it to pay my Chicago parking fines.
I wonder why voters in Cook County continue to elect public servants such as Joe Moore or Larry Suffredin or even Daley. I wonder if voters go in with their head first or they're just plain duped.
This is a irresponsible tax that's going to hurt everyone. Mr. Suffredin let us down.
Woo-Hoo. We're #1 in Sales Tax!
Just have to buy more things out of cook county. You have to be rich to live in Chicago, but i am not seeing the wages going up. When are the politicians going to care about the citizens they represent?
While I live in Chicago I rarely pay Chicago taxes because I buy most everything (including gas) outside of Cook County or online. It's sad that it's now cheaper to buy things online and pay the shipping fee, rather than buying things in Cook County and paying Cook County taxes.
Do yourself a favor and do the same.
Denver's sales tax is only 3.6 percent. Buy in Denver.
"At this point, I see no need for any increase in taxes. I am opposed to a sales tax because it is regressive and adversely affects the poorest members of the community."
—Cook County Commissioner Larry
Suffredin, as posted at www.suffredin.org
Two thoughts: 1. If we are paying more, we had darn well better receive more. 2. Don't just get rid of Stroger, Suffredin and Moore: get rid of Daley, Blagojevich, Tim Mitchell, Carole Brown, and Ron Huberman. They are all pirates and vampires!!!!
We're not getting anymore in services, Todder is getting more friends and family jobs.
11% on a $100 weekly food bill for 4, amounts to 2 dozen eggs, a gallon of milk, a box of pancake mix and a loaf of bread. Is that about right?
How do the people of Cook County keep putting up with this? After living out west (in Denver) for awhile and seeing what responsible and efficient city government looks like, I have to say that I'm wildly ashamed of local gov't here....these asswipes are something else. The fact that we pay more in taxes than NYC and LA is utterly shameful.
On Friday, Finance Committee Chairman John Daley (D-Chicago) asked if there was interest in cutting the more than 1,100 new hires from the budget for a savings of about $80 million."
1,100 NEW HIRES will be averaging a salary of $72,700 a year.
No one wanted to cut them.
Good thing we don't have a crooked Chicago politician running for President.
I am stunned and angry. This sales tax increase is effectively a regressive tax that hurts everyone, especially middle and low income people. Stroger and the Cook County Board should be ashamed.
This is a joke. And the people of Chicago are too timid to stand up and demand Stroger pay the price for his stupidity. He was inept at the beginning and it is clear he's only padding his patronage army--er, I mean Cook County Staff with more cronies and bumbling fools. Every single one of the commissioners should be ashamed of themselves--but they're not.
I'm disgusted.
Have the uneducated masses taken over so much that they think there is some goose with a golden egg who just can pay for all of this?
I work two jobs, go to school, and still cannot make ends meet for my family. Between high taxes, higher interest rates, our medical bills, and uncontrolled gasoline escalation, I have passed the breaking point living in RP. I'm joining the other 1/2 million that's moved out of Cook County since 1980.
This is just crazy. It makes me ashamed to admit I'm a Democrat. This is EXACTLY what Republicans target during elections and with good reason. Stoger is a crook, just like his father as is the entire Board.
Raising taxes is exactly the wrong solution here. It's bad for business, it's bad for citizens, it's bad for the economy, it's just bad. And with this new looming recession, it's complete madness.
I will be voting Republican in all local elections from this day forward.
These cons are pricing middle class right out of Chicago. Our property taxes in 1988 were 700.00, now they are 5200.00. In this market we can't sell and we'll have to pass an increase onto our tenants. Its getting to the point just to afford the city you have to cut corners on other things.(going out to eat,coffees,movies) its a shame that these politicians are disenfranchising the very people who are the meat and potatoes of this city.
The only revolt I know will be to spend my money on-line or outside of Cook County.
i think it was in turkey recently, where there was an turbin type mess, and one of the main crooks got the death penalty, some go beaten with sticks and the other got life. now that's justice for all!
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/chi-0303edit1mar03,0,5468498.story
I hate John Daley with a passion...We can only hope that John Daley, his brother Mayor Richard Daley, Governor Blago and the rest of the corrupt politicians will finally go down! Please Mr. Rezko...talk to the US Attorney, save yourself and talk about the Daleys, the Blagos and the Madigans...PLEASE???
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