Raise Taxes!
- Mayor Rahm Emanuel plans to propose increasing the city cigarette tax by 75 cents to help plug a budget gap and provide more free vision care for low-income Chicago Public Schools students, a City Hall source said Saturday.
The increase would leave Chicago with the nation’s highest total cigarette taxes. The administration expects to collect an additional $10 million, with $8 million going toward the budget shortfall and $2 million to expand a program that provides free eye exams and glasses to students who fail vision screenings, the source said.
The cigarette tax hike money represents only a fraction of the city’s estimated $339 million budget hole for next year. Even as City Hall was preparing to print budget documents on Sunday in advance of the mayor’s Wednesday budget address, there still was uncertainty over whether Emanuel will propose an increase in the city’s amusement tax on movies, plays, musical performances and sporting events.
He thinks they're going to collect another $10 million? Or is this another of those "budgetary projections" that have zero basis in reality and actually end up collecting maybe 40% of their estimate, leaving taxpayer on the hook somewhere else?
Anyone going to Indiana next week?
Labels: money questions
posted by SCC at 12:01 AM
60 Comments:
I guess they've learned nothing from the county's experience with this. Whenever the cigarette taxes are raised, the tax revenues have actually decreased. We're just too close to Indiana for it to ever work.
HA, Indiana? What, do you mean the street on the south side? Anyway, their just making it worth the money to buy single cigarettes... Oops, did I say that on a police forum?
I think smokers are disgusting, but give'em a break. Just get Springfield up approve the casino bill already.
$339 million?
Last week the budget gap was being reported as $229 million.
"Or is this another of those "budgetary projections" that have zero basis in reality and actually end up collecting maybe 40% of their estimate, leaving taxpayer on the hook somewhere else?"
LOL! Just like those marijuana tickets were supposed to generate a ton of revenue.
Fake projections and baseless "facts" designed to support a selfish agenda.
Welcome to Chicago.
"Anyone going to Indiana next week?"
How about to Lake, Dupage, McHenry, or Will Counties? They are about to get a windfall in Tobacco taxes. The border states legislatures are dancing in the streets too.
Here's an idea Rahm, put off building the Riverwalk, Maggie Daley Park, Protected Bike Lanes, and the Bloomingdale Bike Trail for a while and then 'repurpose' the money.
They have cut review in half by raising it so high.
One is left to wounder what their true motive is.
Over $7 a pack for taxes????
That is ridiculous. I don't smoke (how can you unless you are a millionaire??) and I feel sorry for those who do.
How does Rahm anticipate getting in MORE revenue from it?? When I go downtown (very rarely now), I make sure I never buy anything because of the 10% sales tax.
I can imagine smokers hit with this tax will go out of their way to buy cigarettes ANYWHERE but Chicago.
Another blunder from a politician who doesn't have much original ideas. Raise cigarette taxes?
WAKE UP - Cigarette taxes have been maxed out a LONG time ago.
Raise them more and more people will find ways to buy them somewhere else and whatever tax revenues you did have on cigarettes will diminish.
Just plain ineffective, tired, and typical already.
wow, how 'bout that? A liberal democrat, unable to resolve yet another tremendous hole and gap, a shortfall... just call it a deficit due to decades of overspending and borderline criminal fiscal malfeasance.
Hey, I know! Let's just go with a 5 or 10 dollar tax per cigarette, and another 5 per gallon of gas, and tax cabs again, or hit buying cookies with a city entertainment tax, or big gulps and hot dogs.
decades of one party rule in this town and always in the red, always desperate, in a crisis, bogged down in bad ideas, poor leadership, and the mire of corruption.
Tax more, waste more.
A tried and true method of raising needed dollars. It has been used with great success by democrats for almost 200 years. If it fails you can always blame Bush and/or the republicans. Of course people in high level government positions somehow escape paying these taxes.
The easiest legal way to take money out of peoples pockets is to tax them. The poor children need free glasses. No wonder they can't shoot very accurately.
Simple economics 101, lower taxes and watch sales double. Heard on the radio that the governor of Wisconsin wants to slash $100,000,000 from property taxes. Any chance that will ever happen here?
Why are the shorties getting free glasses while our retirees are being told to get fucked?
Obamacare doesn't provide glasses?
Why not just raise the cost of health insurance for those who smoke? In fact just raise the cost for all those who lead unhealthy lifestyles.
MORE FREE SHIT. Typical. I'm so glad I retired and fled that shithole last year. It's very relaxing.
LOL, on a side note I can't believe anyone still smokes nowadays. Knowing it's bad for you and the cost to do it. I often laugh when I see the guy holding his sign at the intersection claiming homelessness and will work for food but he is smoking. I often wonder how high it will take cigarettes to go before people actually quit that habit. I still laugh when I see someone selling "loose squares" on the street. So glad I quit that habit.
One who used to be the morgage broker for a banking system that destroyed the housing market is running the capital of the worlds criminal empire. You might wonder who were the idiots that voted for this guy? Last time I looked around I saw idiots from cermak to division....
Or you can ask DOJ to smuggle cigarettes and sell it here like they did on the east coast. Agents bought low taxed cigarettes in Virginia and "smuggled" it to a high tax state - New York! Don't let me start on the Fast and Furious on hand grenades......
i bet none of this new money will go to help out the pensions....tick tock......
Actually I'm moving out there, closing on the new place in a few weeks. Goodbye Illinois for good!
Retired CPD.
I suppose cutting the budget would be too much to ask. Nope. Lets just keep raising taxes to try and cover the overgrown,corrupt,patronage filled city,county and state government. Where else will you find your homes value going down yet the assessor tells you the value went up 20 % ? We are so stupid to keep voting for this shit.
It's for the little children so they do not have to breathe no smoke.
hot off the presses--- rahmbo has approached cpd research and development and asked if he could sell advertising space on the back of officer's vest covers--- rahmbo thinks his officers would look cool walking around looking like nascar drivers and it would generate revenue--- he is also looking into plastering corporate stickers all over city owned vehicles for the right price....
The revenue collected by the city on cigarette taxes has decreased since their initial tax increases. Duh! People are still smoking but they are buying cigarettes from other sources. Perhaps coworkers who make a trip to Indiana. Or they go to Indiana. The businesses by the border must be very happy.
Thanks rhammy
collar counties $$$
gas, smokes, guns, ammo, next ?
Increased cigarette taxes in Chicago? Not a problem.
A few examples:
Smoke Shop
1413 Indianapolis Blvd, Whiting, IN 46394
Cigs Inc
1514 Indianapolis Blvd, Whiting, IN 46394
Sam's Smoke Shop
1318 Indianapolis Blvd, Whiting, IN 46394
Spot Smoke Shop & Liquor
11001 Indianapolis Blvd, Hammond, IN 46320
Mr Lucky's
1071 Indianapolis Blvd, Hammond, IN 46320
Thank you, Rahm Emanuel!
There are children in Indiana who will go to private schools, thanks to you. Perhaps even the Lab School at the University of Chicago, 1362 East 59th Street.
Remember OW Wilson?
The non Chicago pick for supt.of police, brought in to stop police corruption after the Summerdale scandal became newsworthy. (too many coppers caught)top end.
what did he do?
He promoted 300 new sgts, many of them were fathers of the "bosses" today,same o same o
He spent money on the CPD; new cars, radio systems, changed colors of cpd patrol units, uniforms, eventually shields too
and held "in house meetings". In district stations as well as areas.
The theme was
the corruption is over. zero tolerance from O.W. Wilson.
It worked, 75% effective, maybe more, Gave new respect to the CPD rank and file. Many of the newly promoted sgts were officers and ncos during WWII, trusted men and good leaders who knew how to gain trust and loyalty to get a job done. They were proven leaders.
To be fair many were clouted hacks as well .
Well It's back thanks to McGoof and Rahmbo. The "What's in it for me" mentality. It stinks.
Take what you can get because they are taking our $$ in taxes, no promotions, pension reform, cola, mandatory residency, ad nauseam.
Clueless leaders. Useless.
Barter is OK. Quid pro quo is OK.
It's for the Children and wives of the trod on underdogs in Chicago.
the members of the CPD.
For the chillins.
Interesting. Each time the
lord high mayor wants to
finance a "feel good "
project he has to look around for some thing to tax to raise the money.
With all the cash he has
alreasy raised, doesn't he have any of it on hand laying around in the banks ?
Pony up black lung people.
There goes the increase of cigarette sales on public corners "get your squares tax free".
This just increases the market for the smuggled cigarettes. The cave dwellers in al Qaeda will love this.
Stop by your neighborhood 'little Arab store' pick up some cigs with no tax stamp and help fund your own murder.
And it's mostly the lower class, Democratic voter who is still smoking in 2013. So, Rahm is slowly killing his constituency while rapidly bleeding the small amount of cash that they have.
Apologies to all the coppers still smoking, but you smell horrid and know you should stop for so many reasons!
This City and State is better off adding another lane on the Dan Ryan and Borman expressways for all the people driving to Indiana to spend their monies!
It is NOT worth buying anything in Chicago or Illinois!
Da Pelon
I think the little man should think a little bigger and use the tens/hundreds of millions of dollars he plans to collect from the speed camera violators. After all, the cameras are for the safety of the kids. It makes perfect sense that the money should be used for them. I wonder of the Mayor has other ideas for that money...hmmm.
Anonymous said...
This just increases the market for the smuggled cigarettes. The cave dwellers in al Qaeda will love this.
Stop by your neighborhood 'little Arab store' pick up some cigs with no tax stamp and help fund your own murder.
10/20/2013 12:32:00 PM
The untaxed cigs are under the counter, there are always legal packs in view.
Most of the time the shopkeepers claim they are from India, never Pakistan. Many ARE from Pakistan, you know Pakistan, where bin laden was living within a mile of the Pakistani military academy. Pakistan is not a friend.
Anonymous said...
Please don't take this the wrong way, go fuck your sanctimonious self!
....................................
And it's mostly the lower class, Democratic voter who is still smoking in 2013. So, Rahm is slowly killing his constituency while rapidly bleeding the small amount of cash that they have.
Apologies to all the coppers still smoking, but you smell horrid and know you should stop for so many reasons!
What about the 100s of millions generated this month alone by the Marathon& the new runway opening. All these cash windfalls and still mired in debt?
Rahm announced all cps yes all cps students will get free eye exams and if needed free glasses! Alan Greenspan former chief of federal reserve said the country is going down from all the entitlements, all of this but no money for working first responders pensions!
Anonymous Anonymous said...
hot off the presses--- rahmbo has approached cpd research and development and asked if he could sell advertising space on the back of officer's vest covers--- rahmbo thinks his officers would look cool walking around looking like nascar drivers and it would generate revenue--- he is also looking into plastering corporate stickers all over city owned vehicles for the right price....
10/20/2013 10:10:00 AM
Great idea! He can use this one from me, no charge. Get those illuminated sideways mini billboards for the rooftops of squad cars, just like the ones you see on taxi cabs. You know, Marlboro ads, Cellular One, etc. The ad companies will pay through the roof (pardon the pun) and Rahm gets to fix the pension mess, too! What a hero!!!
Hey Spank daddy...Eat Skita and DIE..............
Good get their vision fixed so when they shoot someone they hit the target and not innocent people. Maybe we'll even get more head shots. Thanks tiny dancer
Rahm is as dumb as a box of rocks... I have MANY relatives not smart enough to MOVE OUT of CHICAGO but they sure aren't DUMB enough to buy smokes there.. NOT ONE.. out of about 50 who smokes buys them in COOK COUNTY.. the only ones who do are those to lazy to contact someone going out of the city and ask them to pick up a carton for them OR those that smoke only when they drink.. and than get to do so out in the cold..
Anonymous said...
Why not just raise the cost of health insurance for those who smoke? In fact just raise the cost for all those who lead unhealthy lifestyles.
First who's to say WHO'S life is HEALTHY?? They complain about cigarette smoke..but we have a influx of people (including men) with breast cancer.. and a vast assortment of other cancers they didn't get when we have manufacturing polluting our air and smoking everywhere..
I seldom, if ever shop in the shitty of shitcago anymore. The burbs get most of my business. Taxes are exhorbitant and services are poor. Why give these asshats any money to waste on deals that go to friends of the machine ?
Let's build a park honoring maggie for way less than the millions it's projected to cost taxpayers. There must be a vacant lot in Bridgeport they can use !
Why not just raise the cost of health insurance for those who smoke? In fact just raise the cost for all those who lead unhealthy lifestyles.
10/20/2013 07:39:00 AM
And who is the 'all knowing' that will decide what is healthy? We need less Government intrusion in our lives not more. What will it take for people like you to get that?
Raise taxes - the ONLY solution some politicians have.
Many of us are tired of hearing that.
CUT SPENDING - cut back on perks, cut back on all the wasted money on projects put in for cronies. And as to this comment:
--------------------------------
Anonymous said:
(as to a City income tax) It should be 3% and property taxes should go up. I don't work there or live there any more so I don't give a shit if they make income tax of 10% and triple the property taxes. Just keep the pension coming in for another 30 years.
10/20/2013 10:08:00 PM
_________________________________
Just keep the pension coming in???
Like being at the public trough?
Let's start taxing out-of-state pensions. WHY? Cost-of-living cuts both ways!!
If you are living in a cheaper cost-of-living state, you have to pay 20% back to Illinois.
The whole argument of - "you have to pay us more because of the cost-of-living here" would be ok if you stayed in Chicago/ Illinois when you retire, but if you move out to some cheaper state. Pay some back.
Another issue - You earned the money in Illinois and the pension should be spent in Illinois to keep the economy here going. That money has to be re-circulated here - not in Florida or Arizona.
Don't like that deal? Too bad. Make a choice.
Come back here to live (for full pension) or pay back some money that is in there for "cost-of-living" adjustments for Chicago and not re-circulating the money into the Illinois economy.
Anonymous said...
Anonymous said...
Please don't take this the wrong way, go fuck your sanctimonious self!
-------
Struck a nerve, huh? Sometimes the truth hurts. But not as much as cancer. No go brush your teeth.
Anonymous said...
I seldom, if ever shop in the shitty of shitcago anymore. The burbs get most of my business. Taxes are exhorbitant and services are poor. Why give these asshats any money to waste on deals that go to friends of the machine ?
Let's build a park honoring maggie for way less than the millions it's projected to cost taxpayers. There must be a vacant lot in Bridgeport they can use !
10/21/2013 01:48:00 AM
...or a sewage treatment facility that makes the shit not stink. Very appropriate.
10/20/2013 10:10:00 AM
Great idea! He can use this one from me, no charge. Get those illuminated sideways mini billboards for the rooftops of squad cars, just like the ones you see on taxi cabs. You know, Marlboro ads, Cellular One, etc. The ad companies will pay through the roof (pardon the pun) and Rahm gets to fix the pension mess, too! What a hero!!!
10/20/2013 10:58:00 PM
How about police and firemen and paramedics sign people up for magazine subscriptions when we go to a job? Or candy bars and potato chips, like in the ghetto.
10/20/2013 10:10:00 AM
Great idea! He can use this one from me, no charge. Get those illuminated sideways mini billboards for the rooftops of squad cars, just like the ones you see on taxi cabs. You know, Marlboro ads, Cellular One, etc. The ad companies will pay through the roof (pardon the pun) and Rahm gets to fix the pension mess, too! What a hero!!!
10/20/2013 10:58:00 PM
How about police and firemen and paramedics sign people up for magazine subscriptions when we go to a job? Or candy bars and potato chips, like in the ghetto.
A few examples:
Smoke Shop
1413 Indianapolis Blvd, Whiting, IN 46394
Cigs Inc
1514 Indianapolis Blvd, Whiting, IN 46394
Sam's Smoke Shop
1318 Indianapolis Blvd, Whiting, IN 46394
Spot Smoke Shop & Liquor
11001 Indianapolis Blvd, Hammond, IN 46320
Mr Lucky's
1071 Indianapolis Blvd, Hammond, IN 46320
Thank you, Rahm Emanuel!
I55 to Route 83
North or South $5.60 a pack
Fuck you very much, Mr. Mayor !
I personally wish that every state would tax cigs, alcohol, drugs, etc and use the money to close budget gaps. Why not profit on businesses that make their money through the demise of others. Cigs could be $30 a pack, beer, $20 for a 6 pack of old milwaukee (others much higher), etc.
The only break smokers should get is an awakening slap across the chops.
what costs more?
Maggie park or the time, effort and manpower expended eliminating Jane Byrne's name from the entire City of Chicago?
we really need a little pimp park where dogs can relieve themselves.
as a retired po with no extra eye coverage, or dental, try to get a free exam and free anything for your vision and teeth.
but
you'll pay for the shitheads. through your tax dollars and tax increases.
we need a bike lane to Hammond
one of those blue bikes too with a stainless steel basket, a big one, to haul all of the squares back to crook co.
If the increased cigarette tax goes through, the same thing will happen as it did with charging 10 cents a bottle tax on bottled water. The tax revenue will actually go down because more people will buy cigarettes outside of Chicago like they did with the bottled water tax was increased
Residency!!!!!!
This ordinance will only open and expand the underground cigarette market
Just keep the pension coming in???
Like being at the public trough?
Let's start taxing out-of-state pensions. WHY? Cost-of-living cuts both ways!!
If you are living in a cheaper cost-of-living state, you have to pay 20% back to Illinois.
The whole argument of - "you have to pay us more because of the cost-of-living here" would be ok if you stayed in Chicago/ Illinois when you retire, but if you move out to some cheaper state. Pay some back.
Another issue - You earned the money in Illinois and the pension should be spent in Illinois to keep the economy here going. That money has to be re-circulated here - not in Florida or Arizona.
Don't like that deal? Too bad. Make a choice.
Come back here to live (for full pension) or pay back some money that is in there for "cost-of-living" adjustments for Chicago and not re-circulating the money into the Illinois economy
-------------------------------------
Damn right keep the pension coming in- we earned it, every penny! During our careers as officers, we have to live here as required by the city. That means we pay all the city fees, fines, taxes, etc. for that duration of time, and the city collects millions in revenue from us every year. Who the hell are you to tell anyone to give up their a percentage of their income because they choose to move to another state? We've paid our dues here and when the time comes (God willing) to close this chapter on my life I don't want to continue to be raped by the tax hungry politicians in this fkd up city or state. Our pension is a modest one and pretty much a fixed income as they have decided to diminish the COLA on retiree's pension. And keep in mind we are not eligible for social security, so that is all we've got barring any outside investment. There is no justification for additional taxing. As I've said before, the city makes millions from us every year so if they can't budget that money properly while I'm here that's not my problem. Stop misusing the current tax revenue and there would no budget problems. Stop handing out free money and services to the thousands who have never worked a day in their lives. Don't take more from those who have already given and sacrificed for what they've earned.
"...Eat shitka and die..."
I got a feeling all you smokers have a much better chance of dying than I do.
Spanking is good cardio.
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