In the Daily Herald this past Monday, June 22nd, I noticed an excellent letter to the editor from Schaumburg resident Mike Theodore. Mike, a member of the Schaumburg Freedom Coalition, made an excellent comment about how many people are missing the point that many local elected officials, including Schaumburg’s own Mayor Larson & the Village Trustees, share in the blame for Cook County having the highest retail taxes in the country. Below is a portion of Mr. Theodore’s letter:

Many in the area have in fact opposed the rise of taxes, including Palatine, which threatened secession. But one does not have to go far to wonder why the Schaumburg government has been quiet in opposition to the county tax increase.

The unfortunate truth is that the Village Board lives by the same tax and spend philosophy. If the citizenry wants a lower sales tax, they need a leader. Schaumburg is already a leader in the township of Schaumburg in so many different ways, why not in the fight against the county?

There is one revolutionary idea: lead by example. If the county can live off a smaller sales tax, let Schaumburg prove it by lowering the municipal sales tax, shrinking the size and scope of Village government, and lifting the burden on local businesses.

Much of the angst for high sales taxes in Cook County is cast on Todd Stroger and a few Chicago “Democratic Machine” politicians. The truth is that many suburban leaders, including Republicans, have been raising taxes in lock step with the Cook County Board over many years. Schaumburg is a perfect example of how our local elected officials have been hamstrung in fighting county tax hikes because of their own addiction to tax hikes.

During Mayor Larson’s administration, he has overseen unprecedented tax hikes on the people of Schaumburg. Larson was the architect for two retail sales tax increases in 1989 and 2004, which now collect over $20 million per year from the local economy. Larson has also overseen a 2% increase in the prepared foods and beverage sales tax, assesed on all customers at Schaumburg’s bars and restaurants. There has also been a hotel tax increase, a telecommunications tax increase, and an amusement tax increase.

Many Schaumburg residents may be shocked that prior to Al Larson becoming Mayor, the Village assesed no taxes of this kind on Village residents or shoppers. To repeat, the Village of Schaumburg assesed no taxes of any kind prior to 1989. No home rule sales taxes, hotel taxes, telecommunications taxes, amusement taxes, transfer taxes, property taxes etc. How did we ever manage without it and can this be accomplished again?

With Larson’s tax hiking past revealed it should come as no surprise to Schaumburg’s citizens that he was nowhere to be found when Todd Stroger and others were pushing for higher sales taxes in 2007.  Someone with an embarassing taxpayers protection record as Larson has no standing whatsoever in urging others to control their tax and spending ways.

With some of the highest sales taxes in the nation strangling our residents and businesses ,Mayor Larson, who once billed himself as a fiscal conservative, is not the leader we need to save Schaumburg from its economic woes.

Perhaps the leader(s) that roll back these ridiculous tax rates will be, as Mr. Theodore suggests, the taxpayers themselves.

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