Stroger Vetoes Sales Tax Rollback

Cook County Board President Todd Stroger made good on his promise to veto a second attempt by the county board to rollback the 1.75 percent sales tax by half a percentage point. Back in May the county board voted to cut the sales tax by the same amount, which Stroger also vetoed. Then, county commissioners couldn't muster the 14 votes needed to override the veto, leaving the sales tax hike, enacted amid much controversy and hand wringing last fall, intact. The sales tax increase has been so unpopular, county-wide, that a group of suburbs in the northwest have even voted to secede from the county.

In a statement released to the press on Friday, Stroger threatened that the tax cut would "gut funding for essential County services." In April, however, Stroger suggested that the county could cut the sales tax by a quarter of a percent, pending receipt of federal funding. That never panned out. Regardless, County Board Finance Committee Chair John Daley and Commissioner Larry Suffriden both said they believe that they will have enough votes this time to override the veto.