The Illinois House passed a bill Tuesday that will allow counties to consolidate units of governments as a means to reduce property tax rates.
The bill, HB 4501, was introduced by Democratic state Rep. Sam Yingling of Grayslake, who modeled the legislation after a government consolidation pilot program that was tested by DuPage County officials in 2013. The county is expected to save $100 million as a result of the program, according to Yingling's office.
"This common sense approach to reducing expenses and consolidating services will provide relief to Illinois homeowners who are increasingly being taxed out of their homes. ... I'm confident the success of the DuPage pilot program can be replicated by most counties throughout the state," Yingling said in a press release. "Any government agency that is a line item on our property tax bills, yet provides no unique or irreplaceable constituent services needs to be on the chopping block."
The bill passed 93 to 19.