Informational events for proposed property tax relief
Bourbonnais, IL – In order to help Bourbonnais residents become more informed on the upcoming election’s referendum, the Village of Bourbonnais is hosting two open house events before April 4.
Wednesday, March 1, and Wednesday, March 29, both sessions will be held 5:30-7:00 p.m. in the Community Room at the Bourbonnais Municipal Center 700 Main St. NW. All are welcome to meet with elected officials, discuss the proposed Non-Home Rule Sales Tax referendum for property tax relief and have questions directly answered in a casual environment.
A welcome and brief remarks from Bourbonnais Mayor, Paul Schore, will take place at 6:00 p.m.
The Village of Bourbonnais is proposing to add one percent, or one cent, to its current 6.25 percent sales tax. If residents approve the referendum, funds collected would provide property tax rebates to single-family, owner-occupied homeowners on the municipal portion of their tax bill for at least ten years.
A single-family homeowner, with a property valued at $200,000, pays approximately $300 per year to the Village of Bourbonnais.
“We will be revisiting the referendum in the April election,” said Mayor Schore. “Our community confirmed not enough residents were educated about the one percent or one cent sales tax, and the ballot language was confusing.”
Local metropolitan tax comparisons within Kankakee County include the City of Kankakee whose current sales tax rate is 8.25 percent. Two percent of that tax is a Home Rule Sales Tax.
The Village of Bradley’s current tax rate is 7.25 percent, with one percent as a Non-Home Rule Sales Tax. Bradley residents approved a similar one percent sales tax and property tax rebate program in March 2020. The referendum was supported by 68% of village voters.
The Illinois Constitution states that any municipality which has a population of more than 25,000 are home rule units. A municipality with home rule status can exercise any power and perform any function unless it is specifically prohibited from doing so by state law, according to the Illinois Municipal League.
In contrast, a non-home rule municipality, like Bourbonnais, may only exercise powers for which express authority is provided by state law. As of the 2020 Decennial Census, the Village of Bourbonnais has population of 18,164 residents.
