The Madison County Board is expected to meet this week to discuss the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL) and whether to include the measure on the 2024 ballot.
The Madison County PTELL Executive Subcommittee is scheduled to meet on July 12 at 5 p.m., followed by a special County Board meeting scheduled for July 13 at 6 p.m. at the Madison County Administrative Building.
The special board meeting was called by board members Frank Dickerson (R-Worden), Valarie Doucleff (R-Godfrey), Michael Turner (R-Godfrey), Dalton Gray (R-Troy), Robert “Bob” Meyer (R-Granite City), John Janek (R-Granite City), Paul Nicolussi (R-Collinsville), Charles “Skip” Schmidt (R-Edwardsville) and Chris Guy (R-Maryville).
Before the full board meets, the PTELL subcommittee will meet to discuss the measure and determine recommendations for the County Board on whether PTELL should be placed on the ballot.
Specifically, the subcommittee expects to discuss topics including PTELL”s effect on taxing bodies, the last time PTELL was implemented in Illinois, who is pushing for PTELL and why, what the end result would be in Madison County if voters approve PTELL, Home Rule regarding PTELL, whether PTELL is a positive or negative thing for Madison County, and if PTELL stops back door referendums.
The subcommittee is made up of board members Mike Babcock (R-Bethalto), Stacey Pace (R-Troy), Matt King (D-East Alton), Robert Pollard (D-East Alton), Jason Palmero (R-Glen Carbon), Mick Madison (R-Bethalto) and Terry Eaker (R-Bethalto).
Madison County Chairman Kurt Prenzler supports PTELL but agreed that it is not a perfect solution.
“It’s not a silver bullet,” he said. “But it’s the only tool Illinois law gives us to protect property taxpayers from inflation.”
He explained that PTELL limits the total amount certain property taxes may increase year to year by the lesser of a consumer price index (inflation rate) or 5%. Taxes may increase beyond that, but only if voters approve those increases.
“Sometimes voters approve tax increases and bond referendums,” Prenzler said. “PTELL doesn’t stop that.”
Prenzler said PTELL also “practically eliminates ‘backdoor referendums’ - a legal loophole allowing taxing districts to issue bonds without voter approval, when those bonds will be repaid with higher taxes.”
Nameoki Township is critical of PTELL, calling it “harmful legislation” and saying it does not provide tax caps.
A press release by Nameoki Township Supervisor and former County Board member John Eric Foster states that PTELL does not deliver on lowering taxes, and counties that have adopted PTELL have experienced tax increases.
“Research by prior and current county boards revealed that ALL counties that have adopted PTELL had their taxes grow at a rate 34% faster than Madison County,” Foster wrote.
Foster added that Illinois’ largest counties have adopted PTELL, “yet Illinois still has the highest property taxes in the nation.”
Foster stated that PTELL only affects non-home rule districts, “or in layman’s terms, unincorporated areas of Madison County,” according to its press release.
He also argues that rather than stopping backdoor referendums, PTELL is a backdoor referendum.
PTELL made it to the ballot in 1999, but was rejected by voters with approximately 13,000 votes against the measure and 12,000 votes favoring the measure.
Then in 2018, 2020, and 2022, Prenzler asked the County Board members to put PTELL on the ballot for voters to decide. All three times, a majority of the board members voted against including it on the ballot.
“Here’s the big picture,” Prenzler said. “It’s about the public’s right to vote on it.”