Attacks on tax revenue concern Orland Park, Tinley Park

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Zabrocki

Updated: March 13, 2012 10:31AM

As state and Cook County officials ponder changes in where tax revenue comes from and where it goes, Tinley Park and Orland Park officials have talked about joining forces to combat any proposals that might saddle their own bottom lines.

There’s no question that plans to divert sales tax dollars away from the towns have created a consensus of frustration.

“We never know what the people in Cook County are going to do to us, we don’t know what people in Springfield are going to do to us, we don’t know what the people in Washington are going to do to us,” Tinley Park Mayor Ed Zabrocki said Thursday at a meeting of the Orland-Tinley Economic Committee at the Tinley Park Convention Center. “Sometimes it’s easier to talk as two of the premier communities in the southwest suburbs and speak in a common voice.”

Officials from both villages also expressed concern about how high property taxes are scaring off potential new businesses.

The neighboring towns have had similar meetings dating back more than 20 years, but none in the last five years because there was nothing to discuss, Zabrocki said. Potential changes in the state’s handling of revenue earmarked for municipalities prompted this meeting.

The state collects income taxes, sales taxes, motor fuel taxes and others and then redistributes the revenue to municipalities, but lawmakers last year talked about taking $300 million off the top — or perhaps even the full $1 billion — from the local share of the state income tax. A different plan by Gov. Pat Quinn would have suspended the payments until this year. And Republicans suggested cutting back communities’ share of sales tax and gas tax revenue.

On top of that, the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning is expected to call for changes in how state and local sales taxes are shared among towns in a recommendation to state legislators later this year.

“I think the scary part of all of this is basically, ‘Whose pocket is Springfield going to pick?’ And it looks to be a haves-vs.-have-nots strategy down there right now,” Tinley Trustee David Seaman said.

The sales tax dollars are a boon for both Orland Park and Tinley Park, which have more than 1 million square feet of combined retail space. But officials said the money is needed because of the investment it took to commit to being retail-oriented.

“Towns that have made decisions over decades to foster commercial retail have incurred costs, like bigger police departments and more roadwork to maintain the streets,” Orland Park Mayor Dan McLaughlin said. “I just think this is the critical issue for all the towns like us that have committed to supporting retail and all that comes with it. We need to continue to receive the sales tax that we’ve counted on in our budgets every year.”

Committee members also talked about lobbying Cook County to lower its standards for property tax incentives for vacant businesses.

The group seemed to favor legislation that would allow states to collect sales tax for online sales, with the money going to the state and municipality where the product is delivered. But Orland Park Trustee James Dodge Jr. was skeptical about the state passing the money along.

“If the state gets taken care of and we’ve got all these other issues, all the other entities are going to come shopping. And they’re going to come shopping at the municipal level,” Dodge said. “The county’s going to do it, the RTA’s going to do it, ad nauseam.”

Orland Park and Tinley Park officials agreed they would try to work with U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin’s staff to prevent such siphoning of funds.

The group plans to meet again later this year in Orland Park and twice a year going forward.