By Ron Ulmer
We the citizens of Illinois are among the highest taxed in the US. We pay high sales tax, high property tax, high gasoline tax, income tax, amusement tax, beverage tax, lodging tax, gaming tax, and high fees for vehicle and professional registration.
So, why does Illinois have an unconstitutional budget deficit each year, the most debt per citizen and the lowest bond rating? Where does all of our money go?
- Sadly a large amount goes to corruption. 4 of the last 9 governors have gone to federal prison, numerous Cook County officials, including 30 Chicago city council persons in the past 40 years and other officials across the state have gone to Federal Prison.
- Another large amount goes to all too many units of government. Illinois has 1800 more units of government than any other state, although several states have larger populations or land areas. Our government units include airport, sanitary, library, park, fire, grade school, high school and community college districts. Additionally, we have city, county and township governments, who frequently provide overlapping and duplicative services as is the case with nutrition, housing and health subsidies. Each governmental entity has administrative overhead with the cost of the overhead frequently more than the amount spent on providing services.
What can we citizens do?
We need to vote for state and local candidates who solidly back term limits, back reducing the number of governmental units, support the Illinois Redistricting Amendment and promise not to vote for any government contract for over $20,000, not competitively bid. Illinois governments frequently wave the bidding process that leads to corruption and overpaying for products and services. We each need to commit to attend public meetings and voice our opinions to the elected officials through personal contact, emails and written letters. Sadly, when I attend public meetings, generally only a few other citizens are in attendance, certainly not enough to hold the elected officials accountable. Each of us needs to dedicate ourselves to getting involved in state and local government in 2016. Good governance is NOT a spectator sport! Have a great new year!
