Taxes

According to unofficial vote totals, the measure passed with 55% approval on a vote count of 3,667 yes votes to 2907 no votes.

Contested races are taking place for two Rock Falls City Council seats, two Sterling City Council seats and Dixon Township highway commissioner. Whiteside County voters also are deciding the fate of a proposed public safety sales tax.

The White Oak Library District hopes to raise its taxing rate for the first time in 96 years with a voter referendum on the April 1 ballot in order to expand hours and services.

Winfield-area school districts have been dealt a setback in their yearslong legal fight with the village over a special taxing district.

The McHenry City Council is mulling whether to proceed with a local grocery tax with the state tax going away.

Booker: I am writing to you today to strongly urge your support for the upcoming public safety tax measure. As the sheriff of Whiteside County, | have witnessed firsthand the growing demands placed on our law enforcement, fire and emergency services.

Wise: We must create a new revenue source to cover a deficit of operating the county's 911 call center. That new revenue source is the Public Safety Sales Tax, and the referendum question will be on the April 1 ballot. 

The state of Illinois is doing away with its grocery tax beginning in January 2026. Should DeKalb enact a local grocery tax? Here's what mayoral candidates had to say about it.

The General Assembly’s bipartisan Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability released a new fiscal year 2026 revenue projection that is $737 million short of the proposal Pritzker introduced last month

The notion of tariffs dates to the first major law passed by the U.S. Congress in 1789 and has evolved over time.

Two northern Illinois Republican lawmakers addressed constituent questions this week largely focused on fiscal spending after Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker unveiled plans for a $55.2 billion state budget.

Marengo is the latest McHenry County municipality to add back a grocery tax after the tax statewide is set to go away next year.

With tax day fast approaching on April 15, United Way of Whiteside County is encouraging low-to-moderate-income households who have not yet filed their taxes to visit MyFreeTaxes.com. 

An improved revenue forecast is helping ease pressure on state finances as Gov. JB Pritzker calls for tightened spending to balance the budget without tax increases on everyday Illinoisans

A day ahead of Gov. JB Pritzker’s annual budget address Wednesday, Senate Republicans said they want budget negotiations to include cuts to noncitizen spending while bringing in “transparent accounting.”

Will County craft breweries say the Trump administration's new tariffs on imported aluminum are likely to impact their bottom lines or force them to raise prices

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency is seeking access to troves of sensitive taxpayer data at the IRS

Will County has been issued its final 2024 property assessment equalization factor. The “multiplier” - as it is often called – is the method used to achieve uniform property assessments across counties.

For some in DeKalb County, homeownership was only possible through Habitat for Humanity. But come March 1, if costs rise as expected on imported goods such as lumber, efforts to make housing more accessible could be thwarted, agency Executive Director Kim McIver said.

Gov. JB Pritzker will present his seventh budget proposal Wednesday as the state faces a projected $3.2 billion revenue shortfall for fiscal2026

Due to a loss of federal grant funding, the Dixon Police Department requested $86,767 in city funds to continue to employ a mental health professional in its ranks.

Bolingbrook woman was sentenced to three years in prison for stealing almost $2.5 million from taxpayers by fraudulently billing Medicaid-funded companies for services she did not provided, state officials said. 

TIF is a tool used by local governments to encourage economic development in underperforming areas.

The Illinois State Board of Education voted Wednesday to approve a budget request for the upcoming fiscal year of nearly $11.4 billion, a 4.6% increase over this year’s budget

Joliet Township is once again offering a free tax preparation program for qualifying, low-income residents. Services are available for English and Spanish speakers.

Democratic representatives Lauren Underwood and Sean Casten have proposed legislation that would raise the amount of state and local taxes that can be deducted from federal tax returns

Those wishing to give back to their community now have even greater incentive to do so, as the Illinois Gives Tax Credit provides a 25% income tax credit for donations made to endowment funds like the ones at the Community Foundation of Grundy County.

The DeKalb School Board this week rejected a district attempt to place a failed sales tax referendum back on the ballot in April. The referendum, which proposed a 1% new sales tax benefiting public schools countywide, failed to garner enough votes in November.

Whiteside County voters in April 2025 will once again be asked to consider a countywide sales tax to help fund emergency dispatch services.

The City of Joliet gas tax will now be 5 cents for regular gasoline, 11 cents for diesel fuel

Taxpayers in the Bourbonnais Township Park District received a holiday gift Monday

The property tax levy for fiscal 2025 is just more than $5.1 million, 5.51% more than what was levied in fiscal 2024.

The Kankakee Valley Park District Board adopted an ordinance setting its tax levy for the 2024-25 fiscal year at Monday’s meeting

City officials said Sycamore property taxpayers could pay slightly less to the city than they have in past years on their 2024 property tax levy.

Kankakee School District 111 will be asking for an almost 5 percent tax increase and looking to collect close to $20.3 million in property taxes

IRS leadership on Thursday announced that the agency has recovered $4.7 billion in back taxes and proceeds from a variety of crimes

Kraft Heinz’s $400 million facility hit a snag in its DeKalb construction, pushing the opening date back by two years to 2027. Officials have so far remained tight-lipped on reasons for the delay, however.

The DeKalb School District 428 Board this week gave a final nod to its 2024 property tax levy of $84 million. Here's what your property tax bill might look like.

Huntley has approves a small tax increase to its property tax levy, rejecting one scenario that would have kept the levy flat.

Manteno tweaked its tax levy from the previous year, but residents will see a minimal increase on the village’s portion of their property tax bill.

With the state of Illinois set to phase out the local grocery sales tax, the Sterling City Council voted Monday to implement its own 1% grocery sales tax.

Property tax levy going up 6.5%, but Joliet city officials say only 1% will be paid by existing homeowners.

The village of Channahon said it will be able to lower its tax rate for the coming year, after approving its 2024 property tax levy request.

Joliet Township High School District 204 is proposing a $100 million property tax levy to operate in 2025 – a 4.9 percent increase over last year’s $95 million tax levy.

Joliet City Council holds public hearings Tuesday on property tax levy and 2025 budget.

Sycamore taxpayers can expect to pay more – some potentially hundreds more, depending on the value of their home – to the school district on their 2024 property tax bills after the Sycamore School District 427 Board approved a $45 million levy this week.

The city of Lockport is projected an increase of $1.5 million in spending in 2025, setting aside $11 million for capital projects.

The DeKalb School District 428 school board is weighing its 2024 property tax levy options this month ahead of a final vote expected in December. The board so far has expressed support for a levy that could save the average DeKalb homeowner about $40 compared to their 2023 bill.

The tariffs, if implemented, could dramatically raise prices on everything from gas to automobiles to agricultural products

The Bears have reached a tentative agreement with three Arlington Heights-area school districts over a long-running property tax dispute for the former racetrack land, renewing the prospect of a suburban stadium.