This past legislative session, I advanced a measure to clarify — once and for all — what the limits and protections of property rights are for homeowners in Illinois: Tenants have rights, and trespassers do not.
As a public servant and the chief sponsor of Senate Bill 1563, I want to share why I championed this legislation and what it will mean for Illinoisans across our state and in the neighborhoods I represent, such as those in Cook County, now that it’s been signed into law.
Recently, homeowners and landlords across our state have struggled with squatters occupying their vacant properties, sometimes for months on end. Their only remedy: an exhaustive and costly legal process that even law enforcement can’t bypass without a formal court order.
This new law clarifies that squatters can be removed under the appropriate criminal trespassing laws, leaving no room for ambiguity. Squatters are not tenants. They are individuals with no lease, no legal claim and no right to occupy someone else’s home. This law will finally close the gaps that previously allowed unlawful occupations to continue.
To be clear — this measure isn’t about punishing vulnerable groups, displacing legitimate tenants or undermining civil procedures. It is simply a way to give the authorities the power and tools to protect the rights of property owners. Property owners will be required to provide proof of ownership or legal authority before law enforcement can intervene to ensure that innocent parties are not caught in the middle of a wrongful dispute.
Starting Jan. 1, Illinois will take a commonsense step to restore public safety, protect homeowners and ensure our laws work the way they were intended.
— State Sen. Lakesia Collins, D-Chicago
Our families need relief
As summer has come to a close, so has another property tax appeal season in Illinois. Unfortunately, for most families, this yearly process is just another reminder of how unfair and unsustainable our property tax system has become.
Homeowners across the state are left with few options: Filing an appeal with their county board of review, taking the matter to the state’s Property Tax Appeal Board or — if they can afford the time and money — pursuing a case in Circuit Court. None of these provides the meaningful, long-term relief families deserve.
That’s why over the past several months, I’ve hosted property tax seminars in Cook, McHenry and Lake counties to help residents navigate this frustrating system. The turnout was overwhelming. While the questions varied, the message was the same everywhere: People are desperate for relief.
The hard truth I shared at every meeting is this: The Illinois General Assembly has failed to act. Despite the fact that skyrocketing property taxes are hurting families in every corner of this state — rural towns, working neighborhoods and suburban communities alike — lawmakers in Springfield have chosen to do nothing but kick the can down the road.
As a former mayor, I know this can be fixed. In my community, we cut the tax levy by more than 25% over eight years by making smart, disciplined choices and demanding accountability in every line of the budget. If it can be done at the local level, it can and must be done statewide. The reality is simple: The only way to reduce property taxes is to reduce the cost of government.
But reducing spending isn’t enough. We must also grow Illinois’ economy. That means cutting the red tape that drives employers away, investing in nuclear power and other innovative energy solutions, and putting Illinois in a position to create jobs and generate revenue without raising taxes.
Many in Springfield don’t like my direct approach calling out the tradition of spending more and doing less for our taxpayers. I’ve always said good ideas don’t have party labels. What matters is holding government accountable and making decisions that protect taxpayers.
Illinois families cannot afford another decade of excuses and inaction on property taxes. The General Assembly must get serious, tackle this issue and deliver real, lasting relief to homeowners.
Our residents, no matter their party affiliations, have waited long enough. It’s time for results, not rhetoric.
— State Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Barrington
How to help power grid
The U.S. power grid system is in urgent need of upgrades. Our sagging and outdated power lines support this fact.
One of the main issues is the wire. Most of the power lines are wired with a steel core surrounded by strands of aluminum. These old wires heat up when power passes through them or when the outdoor temperatures are extremely warm, causing them to sag, thus restricting the amount of power through the lines resulting in fires and outages. A new type of wire was designed using a core made of carbon fiber and surrounded by trapezoidal pieces of aluminum. It doesn’t sag as much in the heat and can take up to double the amount of power going through it as compared to the old lines.
Upgrading to the new wires would allow for more wind and solar farms to plug into the grid without having to wait for new right-of-ways and towers, which take many years to approve and build.
So why hasn’t this been done when this seems like such an easy fix? The answer is profits! The big utilities profit more by building new transmission lines for large infrastructure projects than they do upgrading or replacing the existing wires.
The Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act (SB2473/HB3779) introduced in the Illinois legislature this past session includes grid-enhancing technologies such as upgrading the wire for the transmission lines. The revised version of this bill is expected to be voted on in October.
Please write your state lawmakers and ask them to support the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act.
— Joseph Reitmeyer, Mount Prospect
Portillo’s shrinkflation
Michael Osanloo is out as Portillo’s CEO, and the Tribune (“Portillo’s CEO abruptly exits amid sluggish sales,” Sept. 24) cites overly aggressive expansion in Texas as among the problems Portillo’s has encountered during Osanloo’s tenure.
While overly aggressive expansion has surely been one of Portillo’s problems, the Tribune should have also cited overly aggressive contraction of the size of Portillo’s sandwiches paired with similarly aggressive expansion of the prices on its menu.
One would have to be a fool not to realize that virtually everything, including the food that serves as Portillo’s raw material and the offerings of Portillo’s competitors, has gone up in price during Osanloo’s tenure as CEO. However, Portillo’s has been an especially enthusiastic participant in the shrinkflation and price increases that have plagued customers of all types of restaurants. It has gotten to the point in which Portillo’s is no longer competitive with similar chains and the mom-and-pop beef and hot dog stands that have been part of the Chicago landscape since long before Dick Portillo opened his first stand in Villa Park.
Somehow, one gets the impression that Mr. Portillo would not have let this happen.
— Mark M. Quinn, Naperville
Sit down with customers
Michael Osanloo recently stepped down as CEO of Portillo’s. Evidently, the chain is suffering from low sales, expensive expansion costs, shareholder conflict, etc. I have been a lifelong customer and lover of Portillo’s, having grown up in Hanover Park in the 1960s and ’70s.
I currently live in the Milwaukee area and was thrilled when the chain expanded here (five minutes from my home). Before that, I frequently drove down to Vernon Hills to get my monthly Italian beef fix. The only problem is the sale of Portillo’s that provided for expansion into my area also came with a loss of Dick Portillo’s knowledge and skill, and the product has suffered tremendously as a result. Most of the food items offered today are nowhere near as good as they used to be. The quantity of beef, the bread, the quality of the sausage, the fries and the fried onion rings all changed and not for the better.
If the new ownership has any hope of restoring the magic of this outstanding restaurant chain, it really needs to sit down with lifelong customers and get their feedback on the food taste, quality and service. (More times than not, my orders are wrong at the drive-thru.)
Lifelong Portillo’s customers know the answers all those high-paid executives obviously know little about.
— Mark G. Lindsey, Hales Corners, Wisconsin
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