North Cook News

The reforms needed to pull Illinois out of its financial mess are going to be painful, the Republican candidate for the 44th House District seat said during a recent interview.

"Quite frankly, I believe that if we do what is right, no side will be happy," Katy Dolan Baumer, Hanover Township clerk and Illinois state House candidate, said during a recent North Cook News email interview. "Reforms need to be considered, and made, across the board. Every program, every dollar spent, every employee, every system, every line item on the budget, every pension, every school supported, all of it needs to be considered for cuts and realignment or restructure to become a lean, efficient and well-run state that attracts business and families."

Baumer recalled what "a wise man" once told her: that in a good bargain each side loses a bit. 

Illinois State House District 44 Candidate Katy Dolan Baumer

"My concern now is that the state is on a slippery slope toward a very bad situation, a future that is worse than now," she said. "Our strength lies in our numbers, numbers of voters and numbers of politicians who can work together to actually make changes that will affect the generations to come in a positive manner. The longer we wait and kowtow to single-agenda leaders, the deeper the hole we are digging for this state."

One suggestion -- a 1 percent statewide property tax on the value of a home -- is not the way to go, Baumer said. 

"I believe that Illinois has a spending problem, not a revenue problem," she said. "The last property tax hike did nothing to impact the deficit the state is now running. We need to curtail spending, lower the state’s operating costs, negotiate with unions for 'real life' bargaining, and perhaps look at merging governmental agencies and districts to operate more efficiently and cost-effectively."

Dolan Baumer, who ran unopposed in the GOP primary in March, is making her second run against incumbent 44th District Rep. Fred Crespo (D-Hoffman Estates), who defeated her in 2016.

Illinois' 44th House District, which Crespo has represented since 2007, is entirely within Cook County and includes all of Streamwood, about half of Hoffman Estates and Hanover Park, and bits of Schaumburg, Elgin and Bartlett.

The tax would accelerate the number of Illinoisans already fleeing the state, Baumer said. 

"In my community, people that can afford to are moving from Illinois now," she said. "Residents in 1 in 7 homes I visit say that taxes are becoming untenable, that their tax bill is higher than their mortgage, that their tax bill is higher than their Social Security or retirement income. They say that the for-sale sign will be on their property before the fall election. Further, many say that this is the same home they purchased years ago -- and in many cases, paid for -- and now are being taxed higher than the mortgage is or was and it is the very same house."

There's genuine fear in working-class areas of the state, Baumer said. 

"In lower-income neighborhoods, there is a true fear out there that their home or townhome or condo will become the property of the bank, and they will become a burden on their family, friends and the state, perpetuating the cycle of dependence," she said.

"I hear them lament because this is the house that they raised their children in, that this is the house they lived in to help build this community, and now they are faced with it all going away."

Illinois legislators who promote even higher taxes are difficult to understand, Baumer said. 

"I believe that many politicians are out of touch," she said. "Maybe they are not meeting with their constituents, their neighbors, or even their families; or if they are, not taking their advice or issues to heart. I say shame on those politicians that see their political gain above those they purportedly serve. I believe that they are serving other masters with agendas of their own. These politicians are no longer servants, are no longer doing the job they were sent there to do, no longer speaking on behalf of the people. 

"If the politician does not meet with his constituents, or rather only a few who can support his political campaign toward more years of 'service,' then he becomes a political hack. Political hacks have self-interest at heart and do not see or care that the same people they are supposed to help are being discarded."