Cook County Board Votes to Repeal Sales Tax Increase

It's a miracle. The Cook County Board passed an ordinance proposed by Tony Paraica (R-16) to fully repeal last year's sales tax increase. (Democrat Stroger had previously said he wanted to roll back just one-quarter of one percent.) The Paraica plan, which was endorsed by the Chicago Tribune last month, passed, according to Paraica's website, "on a vote of 12-3, with Commissioners Beavers, Steele and Butler providing the no votes, and will go into effect on January 1, 2010."

Needless to say, Stroger didn't like this one bit, and can veto measure. Hal Dardick at Clout Street has more details on the histrionics:

Stroger and some of the board members said the tax increase was needed to keep county services running, but many commissioners said they were tired of the pressure they've been under since they passed the highly unpopular tax last year.

"We've been getting beaten up, and I'm tired of it," said Commissioner Mario Moreno (D-Cicero). "I'm done getting beat up."

Heartbreaking. Guess they didn't mind beating you up, when they passed the increase. According to Dardick, Stroger said that this is "political theater," and that the repeal would "hurt people":

Commissioners said Stroger needs to do more to reform government so less money is needed to run it. Stroger repeatedly said commissioners were talking "crap."

But influential Commissioner John Daley (D-Chicago), a Stroger ally until recently, fired back.

"You might want to listen for a change," he said.

Now why do I get the feeling that when John Daley talks about listening, he isn't talking about listening to ordinary citizens? But no matter. Ordinary citizens pushed back, and it worked. Any day a tax gets repealed - in Cook County, of all places - is a very good day indeed!