Taxes

Some Uptown business owners are criticizing a proposal to raise food and beverage and hotel-motel taxes in Normal. They’re also not happy about an accelerated timeline to a council vote on Monday — just three business days after the proposal became public.

In a memo to the council, city staff says Bloomington will still lack sufficient shelter capacity this winter even with the addition of the shelter village that's under construction near Home Sweet Home Ministries. That’s expected to open in December.

U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood met with the U.S. and McLean County Chambers of Commerce to discuss tax provisions for local businesses as outlined in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law on July 4.

The so-called Big Beautiful Bill Act that passed by the slimmest of margins in the U.S. House last week would make the 2017 federal tax cuts permanent. It also would make significant cuts to Medicaid and other safety net programs.

Advocates of a 1% school sales tax in McLean County have formed a committee to encourage voters to approve the tax on election day. Retired school superintendent Barry Reilly chairs the Vote Yes for McLean County Schools committee.

When the Bloomington-Normal Airport Authority Board meets on Dec. 17 to approve the annual property tax levy, the amount of money it wants to raise will apply to property tax rates in Bloomington-Normal alone, not the entirety of McLean County.

Normal City Manager Pam Reece said the town will keep a watchful eye on the spring legislative session in Springfield.

Unit 5's school board on Wednesday heard a proposal that would increase both the property tax levy and education fund tax rate for 2024. However, the overall tax rate would go down.

The Normal Town Council has authorized preparing a new tax levy increasing annual property taxes by a small amount.

An effort is underway in the Illinois legislature to protect water supplies from a new climate technology that still faces many questions about its safety.