Chicago tax increase appears to fail after Black business owners call it a 'migrant tax'
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has said the new revenue would be used to help the city address homelessness.
By Catrina Petersen | The Center Square
Published: March 20, 2024 7:59am
Chicago residents were asked during Tuesday's primary election whether the city should change the way it assesses real estate transfer taxes on the sale of higher-valued property for the stated purpose of addressing homelessness. Voters appear to have rejected the tax increase referendum in Tuesday's primary.
Chicago already levies some of the highest commercial real estate property taxes in the nation. Cornel Darden, the Chicago Southland Black Chamber of Commerce chairman, said advocates of the tax hike are pushing a narrative that it’s just the "rich, white man" who is going to see an increase in taxes.
"They make it a race thing and say, ‘we’re just going to tax the rich, white people and we’re going to help out everyone else,’ but it’s not just white people who own property just north of a million. Our chamber members own property north of a million dollars,” Darden said.
While Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has said the new revenue would be used to help the city address homelessness, critics note that the referendum doesn't restrict how the money can be spent. The Chicago city council could vote to spend the money anyway it chooses. The Chicago Teachers Union, which is up for a new contract this summer and which has campaigned aggressively in favor of the measure, is seeking housing assistance for its members.
https://justthenews.com/nation/states/center-square/chicago-tax-increase-appears-fail-after-black-business-owners-call-it
