Progress Illinois

The TIF sunshine ordinance, sponsored by Chicago Alds. Scott Waguespack (32nd Ward) and Manny Flores (1st Ward), passed the full City Council by a unanimous vote on April 22. It set a deadline of July 30 for the creation of a single online database of TIF-related documents.

Last Friday, the first day after the deadline, the Department of Community Development (DCD) posted a press release announcing the launch of the new TIF website. Though it conspicuously avoids mentioning the ordinance, DCD spokesperson Susan Massel later acknowledged that the site is the city's response to the legislation. "We believe we've done a good job of meeting the requirements of the ordinance," she told us.

So let's take a look.

The TIF section of the DCD Web site is essentially a series of PDF documents. Many are searchable once downloaded, but others are not copy-and-paste-friendly. There is a lot of great information buried here, much of which wasn't online before.  However, it's necessary to know what you're looking for.

As an example, we're going to examine the information available on the Central Loop TIF, one of the city's oldest and most complex districts.

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Fifty-five days after the Illinois Senate Democrats passed House Bill 174, a tax reform measure to balance the state budget, the General Assembly left Springfield without the budget we hoped for. In fear of a government shutdown and with no consensus on revenue enhancements, the legislature slapped a band-aid on the state’s financial crisis and put off the day of financial reckoning.  

With the imminent threat of government collapse, the state of Illinois adopted a budget that slashed billions of dollars in spending and did not raise additional revenue.  Some call this a reasonable solution.

In actuality, the budget passed by the General Assembly on July 15 brings no stability to state government.  Once again, the legislature borrowed from the pension funds and used fund sweeps and other short-term borrowing gimmicks, all while relying on stimulus funds that will not be available next year.

We learned several days ago that, based on this spending plan, the Illinois State Board of Education has been forced to make drastic cuts.  Here is the unfortunate reality:

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The clock is ticking down towards the end of the General Assembly session.  It is time for our leaders to do the right thing and vote for the revenues needed to maintain the state’s crucial services.

In our troubled economy, the line between those who are poor and those who are not is blurring.  Many are struggling, and it is likely that more will join their ranks.  The Heartland Alliance recently reported that the number of Illinois residents pushed into poverty could grow by more than 400,000 this year.  If the nation’s unemployment rate reaches 9 percent, the poor population could grow by 253,000 in Chicago alone. Is this the time to slash the programs that help people get through tough times, just when more people need them the most?  That is what is on the table in Springfield right now.  Illinois leaders are considering responding to the plight of their neighbors by passing a “doomsday” budget that would decimate crucial programs rather than pass the revenue measures to maintain them.

Taxes pay for crucial programs that are in demand during tough times (just as taxes pay for parks, roads, bridges and police).  Illinois has not had an adequate tax system to fund these popular and necessary services.  We have gotten by with gimmicks and not paying our creditors.  Now, with the economy severely troubled, the Illinois tax system has gone from inadequate to disastrous.

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In the late 1970’s, as the prime interest rate rose to 21 percent, many states eliminated or relaxed regulation of consumer credit.  Some state governments modified their laws so that the rate caps fluctuated with some published market interest rate. Most states raised their caps to around 36 percent, which was a point not binding on traditional lenders. Illinois chose to eliminate rate caps altogether on small loans, setting the stage for our state to become the safe haven for predatory lenders that it is today.

The small loan lending crisis in Illinois, like the national mortgage lending crisis, is the result of a deregulated oversight system, mixed with a lethal dose of greed on the part of the lenders.

In 1999, the Msgr. John Egan Coalition for Payday Loan Reform first took on the small loan industry in Illinois.  After a protracted battle, our state finally passed the Payday Loan Reform Act (PLRA) in 2005.  PLRA was intended to reign in the most egregious practices of the payday lenders. PLRA works to end the debt cycle by restricting rollovers, limiting how many loans can be taken out simultaneously, and indexing the amount a person can borrow to their gross monthly income.

The work of the Egan Coalition continues in 2009 because lenders of small loans continue to squeeze people.  Here’s an example of predatory lending that is still taking place in Illinois.

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