If one is a local governmental official, the best revenue one’s government receives is that which another government has provided.
Think most recently of all the Covid money.
Local governments were able to do mainly good things without have the fear of backlash from their constituents.
Going way back to the early 1970’s when the state legislature and Governor Richard B. Ogilvie put the state income tax in place, local municipal and county officials were bought off, so to speak, with a share of the proceeds.
Now, they think the “Local Distributive Fund” is an entitlement.
The state legislature followed the advice of local Democrat Peter Janko to abolish the sales tax on groceries, the proceeds of which went to local villages, cities and counties.
There was push back from Mayors and Village Presidents to the extent that not only Home Rule municipalities (which have the ability to levy pretty much any tax), but non-Home Rule municipalities got legislative approval to replace the state-imposed tax with one their boards could levy.
This is good public finance.
Now officials in even Chicago will have the take the heat from local taxpayers if they decide they want to keep the revenue stream.
