How Much Will Falling Off the Fiscal Cliff Cost You?

If Congress fails to pass an extension of the Bush era tax cuts by midnight Monday, American paychecks will get smaller. You can use the fiscal cliff calculator to see the impact on your paycheck.

With leaders of Congress becoming more and more skeptical that a deal will be reached before midnight Monday to avoid the fiscal cliff, it becomes increasingly likely that American paychecks will get smaller Tuesday, according to a story in today’s New York Times. “I have to be very honest,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said in the New York Times article. “I don’t know time-wise how it can happen now.” The Senate reconvened today in an unusual session between Christmas and Jan. 1. Even if the Senate passes legislation, the House of Representatives will not come back into session until Sunday barely 24 hours before the deadline, according to a story today on Politico. If no deal is reached, a single person with two exemptions earning $…

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Homewood Mayor: We Need to Improve Intergovernmental Communication

Representatives from Homewood’s other taxing bodies appeared at the Dec. 11 meeting to ask the board to table a vote to spend nearly $1 million in economic development so a joint meeting could be held to discuss the decision.

Homewood trustees passed an agreement to provide $900,000 in TIF money for the development of a new downtown hotel, but not without considerable opposition from the village’s other taxing bodies. Their chief complaint? The village failed to give them a fair warning of such a large impending financial decision. READ: Planned Downtown Hotel Receives $900,000 from Village “Our school district was taken aback by the sudden emergence of the proposed financial assistance package for the downtown hotel project …” Shelly Marks, School District 153 Board President, said. In response, Marks presented the board with a list of questions compiled from her district, the H-F Park District, the Homewood Public Library and H-F High School District 233. She…

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The ORIGINAL Mike B

1:09 pm on Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Change of heart-I am dead set against this development. After my own investigation, I am convinced Homewood cannot and will not support such an endeavor, and most of the Ravisloe wedding guests are incredibly cheap and will not stay in anything above the Halsted Budget Inn (jewish people are not known as spendthrifts)   more ›

Flossmoor Residents to Benefit from $29,000 in Tax Refunds

Flossmoor Economic Director Scott Bordui says residents will see a direct savings on their property tax bill.

Flossmoor residents, as a whole, will save over $29,000 on their property tax bills this year thanks to a resolution passed during the Dec. 3 village board meeting. The extra money comes from the village's 2009 General Obligation (G.O.) refunded money from 2002 library construction bonds. Flossmoor Finance Director Scott Bordui says the excess cash is the result of several factors, including loss and cost collections over the life of the bond and through refinancing.  "It's basically a direct savings to the resident," Bordui said. Bordui said this is the third abatement the village has issued in three years. Overall, this has amounted to nearly $40,000 in savings for residents as a whole.

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One Republican Thinks You're Getting a 'Free Ride' on Your Income Taxes

Jim Edgar tells Reboot Illinois that tax hikes, program cuts and leadership are desperately needed in Springfield. And Pat Quinn brings you Squeezy the Python.

Special Flossmoor Meeting: Water Main Improvement Program

The Village of Flossmoor is hosting the first of two public meetings tonight to educate residents on the upcoming $7.28 million water system improvement referendum.

Reflections Yoga Receives TIF Money to Expand Location

Another 1,000 square feet will be added to the popular yoga business which boasts over 1,500 active members.

Homewood trustees voted in favor of awarding Reflections Yoga owner Cipriano Romero $10,000 through the Retail Enhancement Incentive Program during the Oct. 9 village meeting. The business, located at 18675 Dixie, offers beginning and advanced yoga classes, as well as yoga teacher training. Romero says increasing demand from customers and a desire for more retail space fueled the decision to invest over $11,000 out of his own pocket and the $10,000 in TIF money to build out his current studio into the adjacent southside unit. "... Mr. Romero, you (produced) one of the most thorough business plans that we ever had for a presentation for applying for TIF funds," Trustee Tom Kataras said. "I wish you the best down there with your expansion." …

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Homewood to Vote on $2.6 Million Water Meter Replacement Contract: On the Agenda

A preview of what's going to be discussed and voted on during Homewood's Oct. 9 village board meeting.

Homewood Village President Richard Hofeld and the village trustees will meet at Homewood Village Hall on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m. New Assistant Village Manager Michael Marzal will be sworn in to office during tonight’s meeting. Marzal received his Masters in Public Administration at Northern Illinois University. He was formerly employed as the assistant village manager for the Village of Lincolnwood and the City of Woodstock before that.  Trustees will vote to renew a $19,851 contract with Homewood Disposal for the village’s three-week leaf pickup program. Trustees will vote to waive competitive bidding requirements for three new Chevrolet Caprice police interceptors from Miles Chevrolet through a state purchasing contract for $84,876…

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Tony Dauginas

10:19 am on Saturday, January 5, 2013

Sweeping leaves into the curb, AKA street will only clog the storm drains and cause flooding. Also, during the rest of the yard waste season why can't I just put a temporary sticker on a designated container that gets emptied into the yard waste collection truck. I don't have enough yard waste to justify the expense of a big blue yard waste bin. Also, how many trees were killed to make those …   more ›

On Flossmoor's New Street Lights: Minutes with the Mayor

In this installment of Minutes with the Mayor, Paul Braun talks about Flossmoor's new, energy efficient LED street lights.

Patch gathered questions from readers, for Flossmoor Mayor Paul Braun. Now, Patch will regularly air a series of video responses to the questions readers voted as most pressing. In this edition, Braun shares information about Flossmoor's new energy efficient LED street lighting system. Transcript: The new lighting system for the downtown area is an LED system and it’s replacing the old incandescent lighting downtown—which was easily 35 to 40 years old. We expect to see a five times increase in energy efficiency. The old incandescent lighting burned … a little over 30,000 kilowatt hours, and the new LED system will be at about 66,000. So we expect to see about five times (higher) energy efficiency here and we expect to have lower energy …

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New Homewood Marquee Sign Squeaks By

Village President Richard Hofeld broke a three-to-three vote during Tuesday night's Homewood village board meeting.

Flossmoor Property Tax Relief Efforts: Minutes with the Mayor

In this installment of Minutes with the Mayor, Paul Braun answers what the village is doing in an effort to reduce the burden of property taxes on homeowners.

Patch gathered questions from readers, for Flossmoor Mayor Paul Braun. Now, Patch will regularly air a series of video responses to the questions readers voted as most pressing. In this edition, Braun responds to the question: What is the village doing to help reduce the burden of property taxes on homeowners? Transcript: That’s a really important question. That affects all of us here in Flossmoor. We are concerned about the burden our residents have with property taxes. To put it in some perspective, the village’s share of the property tax bill is 15.2 percent. So, what that means is about 80 percent of the property tax bill—that’s paid for local schools and the township and Cook County—the village has no control over. So, to answer the …

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Tony Dauginas

1:17 pm on Wednesday, September 12, 2012

The discussion about property taxes should start with the taxing bodies that get the largest percentages, but the lack of non-residential tax base is a planning issue under the control of the village   more ›