Cook County Democrats Want A New $40 vehicle stickers urged for all cars of Cook County residents

The Chicago Tribune reports:

All Cook County residents would have to buy a $40 vehicle sticker for each car they own under a proposal two County Board commissioners are floating to help plug a budget deficit now pegged at $238 million.

The county already charges a so-called "wheel tax" on vehicles owned by people living in unincorporated areas. Commissioners Joseph Mario Moreno and Roberto Maldonado, both Chicago Democrats, want to expand that tax to vehicles in municipalities, including Chicago, where the vehicle-sticker fee recently was raised for sport-utility vehicles.

The proposal is one of several to increase revenue that the County Board will discuss Wednesday as it seeks ways to balance Board President Todd Stroger's proposed 2008 budget of nearly $3.3 billion. A countywide vehicle sticker might face an uphill climb to becoming reality, however.

"It's a unique way to try to bring in new revenue, but I don't think it's going to be more popular than the sales tax," said Commissioner Mike Quigley (D-Chicago). "In the end, it's a tax."

Commissioners already have balked at Stroger's proposal to more than triple the county sales tax to 2.75 percent. "The sales tax is probably dead," Moreno said. "It can be resuscitated if people see there is no other way to make our revenues grow."

Moreno said Stroger is "comfortable" with the vehicle sticker initiative as a way of raising revenue. A Stroger spokeswoman said he has yet to take a formal position on the idea, but noted Stroger has encouraged commissioners to come up with ways to boost revenue.

The greed of Cook County Democrats knows no bounds.