Political Tea with Brian Mullins: the disproportionate impact of property tax on black homeowners

Recent research and coverage have revealed that, since 1980, Chicago has seen a significant exodus of black residents, with approximately 181,000 leaving the area just between 2000 and 2010, and some of them may have been taxed into leaving.

“This data is not surprising, related to the ‘Black Exodus’ of 1980, when we consider the fact that the ad valorem tax on personal property was abolished, one year prior, in 1979,” Brian Mullins, president of the Illinois Black Contractors Association, told The Suburban Marquee.

Mullins said that it is even possible that the impact of shifting the tax burden onto homeowners with the removal of the personal property tax was intentional.

“Certainly, removal of the tax and failure to replace it with a statewide tax has had an overwhelming, discriminatory impact on African Americans households,” he said.

The issue has only been compounded by problems within Cook County with unfair tax assessments that have shifted more of the burden of property taxes onto the owners of the county’s lowest-valued properties, he said.

“Erroneous and unfair property tax assessments have had a disparate impact on the modification of mortgages for low- and moderate-income families and have contributed to the foreclosure crisis,” Mullins said. “More than 38,000 homes in Cook County could end up being sold because of unpaid property taxes, a large majority in African American communities.”

The history of error-ridden tax assessments that disproportionately impact the city’s more impoverished residents was also documented in a recent ProPublica study.

Mullins reiterated calls he has made in the past for community members to get involved and stay mindful of the importance of voting in local elections. He said that residents would have the opportunity on Tuesday, April 6, to vote in local school board elections, with school boards playing a major role in what property taxes are levied on local residents.