Illinois state Rep. Grant Wehrli (R-Naperville) | https://repwehrli.com/
Illinois state Rep. Grant Wehrli (R-Naperville) | https://repwehrli.com/
Throughout his long career in public service, state House Rep. Grant Wehrli (R-Naperville) has perhaps never before felt as politically hamstrung as he does now while trying to achieve property tax relief for his fellow Illinoisans.
“Illinois Democrats are all in for marijuana but ducking the real priority of tax reform in 2020,” Wehrli recently posted on Twitter amid growing concerns about the true abilities of the new Legislature Property Tax Relief Tax Force, to which Wehrli was appointed. “There isn’t partisan bickering – [Democratic House Speaker Michael] Madigan and [Democratic Gov. J.B.] Pritzker just don’t want property tax reform.”
Almost from the moment Wehrli was appointed to the 88-member task force by House Minority Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs), he and fellow Republicans have intimated their voices do not sufficiently factor into the decision-making process. This would realize the party's fears from the outset that the task force created by Pritzker would suffer the same fate as so many bipartisan, reform-driven task forces before it.
Illinois Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady
Durkin and Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady, in separate statements, recently said that some of the early actions taken by the panel did not include satisfactory input from the entire body. Historically a staunch opponent to virtually any tax increase, Wehrli went into his new post with a clear vision of what needed to be accomplished.
“Our work on this panel begins immediately and I look forward to taking a deep dive into this incredibly important issue,” he posted on his website following the July appointment. “We must find a reasonable solution that allows for proper funding of local services traditionally funded through property taxes in a manner that does not put people at risk of losing their homes. It’s very serious work and I can’t wait to get started.”
The original plan called for the task force to submit a report to the governor and the General Assembly with both short and long-term solutions by the end of 2019.
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