Illinois Towns borrow, you pay

The Chicago Tribune reports:

Just above the cash register at Sam's Auto Service, the owner has taped up a photo of his elderly father, a snapshot of his granddaughter and his property tax bills.

Owner Bassam Shaheen knows it may seem odd to tape up an old $53,000 annual tax bill. But he wants to show customers why his west suburban shop struggles to break even.

"Some people complain and say, 'Why is the (repair) bill so high?' I say, 'Here, look at the high taxes,'" Shaheen said.

His tax bill is the costly ramification of Illinois' largely hands-off approach to municipal debt — rules that are among the loosest in the nation.

A Tribune investigation found that the inner-ring suburb of Bellwood — littered with vacant storefronts and crumbling factories — now has among the highest municipal tax rates in the county while still drowning in debt.

Barack Obama's Illinois. Just a reminder, the next time you consider buying Illinois debt.