Though officials were overwhelmed with calls from concerned residents, the Joliet City Council has approved a budget that proposes hiking gas taxes and the city’s property tax rate.
Kevin Sing, finance director for the city of Joliet, said the proposed budget of $662 million in 2025, up from $643 million this year, calls for an increase in the city fuel tax rate from the current 4 cents to 5 cents for passenger vehicles. Tax on diesel fuel could also increase from 4 cents to 11 cents. Nearby Channahon’s diesel fuel tax is 10 cents.
Though the budget was approved, city officials would have to separately vote on the city’s fuel tax rate hike proposal as a separate item at a later date, said Sing.
Sing told the city council that the property tax levy will also increase by 6.5 percent to generate an additional $3 million for the coffers. He explained that current property owners in Joliet will pay 1 percent toward the tax levy. If the assessment stays the same, property tax owners in the city could see an increase of their property taxes by 1 percent. The remaining 5.5 percent property tax levy increase will be financed through new developments, according to Sing.
The general fund, which is used in the City of Joliet to cover day-to-day expenses like hiring new employees, buying vehicles and paying for infrastructure road projects, is proposed to increase from $221 million this year to $236 million in 2025.
Dylan Harrison, a lifelong Joliet resident, said he does not want to move away from the community he loves. But he worries for his family’s future, if taxes keep rising.
“Every year, my taxes keep going up,” he said. “My question is it is a little bit this time, but how about next year and the year after? Chicago is a nightmare as we hear about crime and taxes. I fear Joliet might go down the same path.”
But Sing said the tax levy hike requested Tuesday would pose a small amount of tax increase to existing property owners, not misinformation spread on social media with some people suggesting it was going up by as much as $6,000.
For example, he said, the owner of a $100,000 home would see an increase of $4 per year on their taxes; someone who owns a $200,000 home would see a hike of $8; and the person who owns a $300,000 home would see an increase of $12 per year on their taxes. The average home value in the City of Joliet, according to Mayor Terry D’Arcy, is $246,000.
Council member Jan Quillman sympathized with the property owners in Joliet. She asked the council if the tax levy proposal could have been tabled for future discussion so the city could better communicate with residents on just how much their pocketbooks would be impacted by the tax levy proposal. The council did not support her suggestion of tabling the vote.
“People are maxing out their credit cards to pay for groceries and gasoline,” she said. “Some people are barely making it. We all have to live within our means.”
But D’Arcy defended the city for making tough decisions. He said previous collective bargaining agreements with unions have left the city with hefty health insurance payments.
“This is not Chicago, this is Joliet,” he said. “We have already cut this budget to balance it. I am a public servant, not a politician.”
Additionally, according to Sing, much of the city’s water and sewer fund, an estimated $101 million, will be used to replace 30 miles of new water mains in Joliet. In preparation to switch from the city’s underground well system to Lake Michigan water in 2030, Sing said the city will spend $22.7 million to prepare for the switch. An additional $28.7 million will also be allocated toward engineering of that project, he added.
