Types of Tax

Don't tax you, don't tax me, tax that fellow behind the tree.
Senator Russell Long, 1977

Beware liberals promising to tax someone else in the name of helping children. They'll end up taxing you while they and their friends benefit.
Wall Street Journal Editorial, February 28, 2006

The ad valorem property tax is the primary revenue source for local government in the United States. Some states tax real estate heavily and exempt personal property. Others tax both. Still, others rely more on income tax, sales/use tax or they tax sins. Then there are those who boast of their low property taxes and instead tax intangible property. A very important benefit of the property tax over the sales tax or income tax a tax is that the revenue always equals the tax levy, unlike the other taxes, which can result in shortfalls producing budget deficits. The property tax always produces the required revenue for municipalities' tax levies.

The fact is that government costs money. It doesn't really matter where you are located. Government costs about the same everywhere subject only to minor variations.

Nationwide, local governments are are looking to increase revenues from constant sources such as the property tax. As a result, property taxes will be increasing at double-digit rates again during 2008.

In Illinois, there is pressure on the local assessors to increase tax revenues. This pressure is political in nature and is resulting in higher assessments and a search for alternative sources of revenue.

Cook County Assessor James M. Houlihan is advocating that taxpayers exchange a property tax cut for a similar state income tax increase. According to his proposal, the "tax swap" would be revenue neutral. This concept has been voted down every time it was introduced to the legislature. Others are proposing tax oversight boards and even a state constitutional convention. Then there are those special interest who would tax everything in sight, telephone, Internet sales, gambling, etc.

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