PRITZKER UNDER FEDERAL INVESTIGATION FOR PROPERTY TAX SCHEME, BUT NOW HE WANTS A FAIR TAX FOR YOU
Austin Berg
Pritzker under federal investigation for property tax scheme
Removing toilets from the governor’s Gold Coast mansion saved his family more than $331,000 in property taxes.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, his wife and brother-in-law are the subject of a federal criminal investigation arising from property tax breaks on a Pritzker mansion in Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood, WBEZ reports.
A 2018 Cook County Inspector General investigation found now-Illinois First Lady M.K. Pritzker directed workers to remove toilets from the mansion in order to declare it uninhabitable, which resulted in more than $331,000 in property tax breaks.
The report called this a “scheme to defraud” taxpayers and Pritzker pledged to repaythe money. But the governor and his wife may now face legal consequences.
Illinoisans are no stranger to criminal investigations into the state’s chief executive. Four of the past 10 Illinois governors have gone to prison.
The ongoing federal probe will cast further doubt on one of Pritzker’s key political objectives: removing the state’s flat income tax protection in order to install a $3.4 billion progressive income tax hike. His plan relies on a political promise that the middle class will not see further tax hikes under a progressive, or graduated, income tax regime – and that wealthy Illinoisans will pay what’s “fair.”
But the governor’s unwillingness to slow Illinois’ new spending and debt, bad math from his administration, and the experience of the last state to switch to a progressive income tax dictate that Pritzker’s amendment would be a bridge to higher taxes for the middle class. Notably, Illinois property taxes will continue to rise under Pritzker’s plan.
The investigation will be especially important to Illinois state lawmakers in the General Assembly, who face pressure from the governor’s office to approve a constitutional amendment before the end of May, sending the question to voters on the 2020 ballot.
To pass at the ballot box, a constitutional amendment question requires approval by a 60% majority of those voting on the ballot question or more than 50% of those voting in the election.
Pritzker and his plan are already underwater in key districts held by Illinois House Democrats, according to polling conducted by Fabrizio, Lee and Associates. Respondents who said they were aware of Pritzker’s tax plan were more likely to oppose a constitutional amendment allowing for a progressive income tax.
A criminal investigation into the governor over a tax matter is unlikely to help.
some interesting theories are floating around the back channels. under the 14th amendment the president has the authority to arrest people guilty of insurgents(a rebel or revolutionary). public officials aka governors, mayors, states attorneys take an OATH TO HONOR THE CONSTITUTION. we see a few of them everyday in this state as well as district attorneys across the nation, governors of cali oregon washington. if the person who doesnt like my longer opines ill make it easier to understand. portland has over 100 days of riots. the few that are arrested are released and most are not even charged. hmmmm where have we seen this type of behavior? golly gee say it aint so, but in truth the unholy Oath takers have not protected their constituents. also known as insurgents.
ReplyDeleteI filed my taxes in February and Turbo Tax says I'm supposed to get a $750 return that has yet to arrive. I've made inquiries and was told by representatives from the Illinois Department of Revenue that it takes about six months for a response. Six months? Really? And this fat bastard, who spent millions on ads a year and a half before the election against Rauner, is now spending millions trying to ramrod this tax amendment through. This chubster flaunts all the rules, bullshits about the shutdown, makes exceptions to the travel bans because of course he's special. Fuck him.
ReplyDeleteJB Pritzker spent Sixty Million Dollars of his own money to promote Mail-in Voting and the "Graduated Income Tax." What's in this for him?
ReplyDeleteSome say that democracy has failed. The rest of us understand that this is not a bug in democracy it is their feature and it is coming to its end everywhere it is in use. They have ruined every once great industry that they could get their hands into in history and still active in the destruction today. Evil in our republic can only destroy , it is not equipped to do anything else.
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ReplyDeleteIsn't it interesting that this guy, who had the toilets removed from one of his gold coast mansions to save $300,000 in real estate taxes is now spending millions so that those in his income bracket pay more taxes. He must think the rest of us don't have mortgages, tuition, gas, insurance, utilities and grocery bills that never go away. Oh wait, I forgot, he fed all those pre-schoolers breakfast. I'll lay odds he kept the chocolate pudding out of every one of those meals for himself, something to snack on after he gave that butter sculpted cow a few licks.
ReplyDeletePhony Pritzker should be locked up for Tax Evasion. Joe Citizen would be in prison already...
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