Looming pension payment could drive Chicago taxes to highest in U.S.

Crain's Chicago Business reports:

It's possible that Chicken Little was right.

Next year, Chicago must come up with a state-mandated $590 million increase in its contribution to police and fire pension funds. A Crain's analysis of the city's tax and budget options shows that payment could lead to the highest commercial property tax rate in the nation and still leave the city needing to make millions of dollars in spending cuts that could decimate many services.

In the next few months, state legislators will be asked to restructure the city's pension obligations. But if they balk or the courts reject their fixes, Chicago will be faced with some politically toxic and economically perilous decisions.

Crain's looked at the examples of four cities that recently raised property taxes by large percentages—Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta and Scranton, Pa.—and projected what similar increases would mean here.


For instance, Atlanta hiked property taxes by 36 percent in 2009. The same increase here would move Chicago's commercial tax rate, already the second-highest in the country among large cities, past Detroit to become the highest such levy. Its industrial rate would move from 12th to 11th, surpassing Indianapolis.

Check out the table by Crain's in the article.#Chicagofail