One of the things I’ve been meaning to ask about the FY2012 budget, but simply did not get around to, is about the total in staff pay raises included in the budget. We supposedly MUST raise taxes to build a police station. What if we extended the pay freeze a couple more years, as we…
Category: Payment Due?
Voluntary Separation Agreement
The Voluntary Separation Program (VSP) agreement landed in my inbox last evening. The actual contract agreement signed by qualified individuals is the same for AFSCME union employees as for non-AFSCME IMRF/management/“Chapter 3” employees. Due to the AFSCME side letter and the difference in required numbers of service years for the two groups, I had gotten…
Expenditure Info, Central Area TIF Annual Reports FY2008-10
The following table was developed using the itemized expenditures pages of Tax Increment Financing (TIF) annual reports, Central TIF (TIF 1) only. [table id=15 /]
City of DeKalb’s EAV Plunge, Part 1
The City of DeKalb FY2012 budget draft proposal (p. 23) says: FY2012 Revenue Highlights: Property Tax Revenues are expected increase approximately 4.35 percent due to a tax increase from 60 cents to 65 cents per $100 of equalized assessed valuation. It should be noted that revenues received from the property tax only go toward the…
City of DeKalb’s EAV Plunge, Part 2
Click on the image for a larger version, and once more for the largest. Each “Decline” was calculated by subtracting Tax Year 2010 from the peak year shown. Usually the peak came in 2008, but not in all cases. Should we really be budgeting new TIF projects for FY2012?
City & School District TIF Surplus Budget Estimates
[table id=13 /] The school district is allocating its share for debt service, while the City of DeKalb’s will be dropped into the General Fund. One might ask why the city has projected $670,000 for FY2012 since the October estimates came in $528,200 under its preliminary estimates. At least two factors must be at play:…
FY2011 TIF Surplus
Per an intergovernmental agreement, the City of DeKalb promised to declare a 50% surplus of the Central Area TIF (aka TIF 1) increment for each of the 12 years of the extended and amended TIF district. The surplus will be paid to all taxing bodies in the same proportions as the regular property taxes are,…
TIF & Schools
The Daily Register has reprinted a recent article by the AP’s Zachary Colman. LA SALLE, Ill. (AP) — One of the most popular rooms at LaSalle’s Dimmick Elementary School is the library-turned-computer-lab-turned-classroom. Children jostle for elbow room and can’t use the library at all when class is in session. Down the hall, the school counselor…
State Employees & Workers’ Comp
Received this morning: this link to the Belleville News series of investigative reports on state employee’s Workers’ Compensation claims. The latest, published April 20, details the paper’s attempts to obtain information regarding successful claims. Recent and upcoming opinions delivered by the Attorney General’s Public Access Counselor that pertain to Workers’ Comp-related Freedom of Information Act…
Tune In to the Psychic Energy
Headline: “Quinn: Approve borrowing or lose local tax revenue”. Legislative leaders are considering a proposal that would authorize [Illinois Governor Pat] Quinn to shift money from other state accounts if he is not granted permission to borrow the money. The plan also includes a proposal disclosed Friday to suspend local income-tax payments to cities and…