In the waning days of the special legislative session, Gov. Bruce Rauner released an ad highlighting people hurt by sky-high property taxes and urging reform.
“Property taxes are rough,” one Illinoisan says in the ad. “I got married a couple of years ago. We had a baby this month, and we got hit with a huge property tax bill.”
Another resident notes that her home area is losing residents to the high property taxes, which the Illinois Republican Party said is a common trend among people and businesses.
“We can’t have a balanced budget without changing the system,” Rauner says in the ad. “The No. 1 change is property tax relief.”
The Illinois GOP echoed Rauner, calling property tax relief the most important reform needed in the state’s budget.
“It was announced that taxes went up 98 percent,” another Illinoisan says in the ad. “People just can’t afford to live here… . Our current governor is the only one that has stepped up to help reduce costs. Otherwise we’re going to lose businesses, and we’re going to lose people.”