Hinsdale Set To Tax To Max Next Year

DARIEN, IL – Towns such as Elmhurst, Darien and Burr Ridge take pride in keeping their property tax levies – the total amounts they collect – the same for years at a time.

Darien, for instance, has increased its levy just once this century.

Hinsdale has a different practice, officials indicated Tuesday.

At a Village Board meeting, trustees unanimously voted to increase next year's estimated tax levy by 5 percent, the maximum allowed under state law. This means the village will get over $600,000 more in property taxes next year, for a total of $12.2 million.

Under the law, public bodies can increase their levies with the rate of inflation, up to 5 percent.

But in the last two years, inflation has exceeded 5 percent. As of December 2022 – when the inflation rate is gauged for tax purposes – it was 6.5 percent.

At the Village Board meeting, officials said it was consistent for the village to increase its levy with the rate of inflation.

The village and its library made up 10 percent of last year's property tax bill. By contrast, the elementary and high school districts took up 80 percent.

In Illinois, school districts, particularly wealthy ones such as Hinsdale's, are heavily dependent on property taxes.

Towns, meanwhile, enjoy major sources of income such as sales taxes, a share of the state's income tax, fees and fines.