Proposal would ease suburbs' break from Cook County
"Reagan County" has a bit of a ring to it for state Sen. Matt Murphy of Palatine.
That could be the name created if Palatine and other towns fed up with having little influence in Cook County matters disconnect and former their own county.
"It's a political powder keg to a certain extent," he said.
State Rep. Suzanne Bassi, a fellow Palatine Republican, introduced a bill to the House Wednesday that would make it easier for townships to leave Cook County. Murphy introduced the same bill to the Senate on Feb. 15.
Bassi said it's a "Boston Tea Party response" to the county's one percentage point sales tax hike approved on Feb. 29. She and Murphy said the creation of a new county -- tried before as the brainchild of former Palatine Mayor Wendell Jones -- is unlikely, but they wanted to send a message.
Bassi said such tactics are needed to persuade Chicago politicians to include the suburban viewpoint in their decisions.
"This is not a joke. … If the city of Chicago is not going to pay attention to the suburbs, by golly, we should be seriously looking at secession," she said.
The proposed law would make secession easier by no longer requiring voter approval from all of Cook County. Instead, only voters in the breakaway area would have to OK the move.
Murphy said the county would be better off appeasing the Northwest suburbs. He called the area "Cook County's golden egg," saying it pumps in millions of dollars without receiving adequate services in return.
Palatine officials have raised the possibility of leaving as a response to the sales tax hike. They said it would hurt local businesses and village services by sending customers to neighboring counties where they could shop for less. Palatine relies more heavily on its sales tax revenue, as the village doesn't collect a property tax.
Bassi criticized Cook County spending, saying the tax increase was instituted without making reforms. Palatine Councilman Jack Wagner also bashed the tax.
"The bottom line is that they are running out of money and they can't afford to continue without cutting back services or increasing fees," he said.
County services Palatine residents do receive include the Vista Health Center in Palatine and the Cook County dental clinics housed in the Rolling Meadows court facility. Bassi said she'd like to see better policing at Cook County forest preserves and other improvements.
Palatine officials have invited Cook County Board President Todd Stroger to address the village council at Harper College. No date has been scheduled. Stroger's press secretary didn't return a phone call seeking comment Wednesday.
"Do you want to play the odds to see if he shows up?" Bassi joked.
Whether the secession bill goes anywhere in Springfield is uncertain. The deadline to get bills out of committees is this week and in years past other legislators have made similar proposals that have died in committee.
Murphy said the new county could be comprised of Barrington, Maine, Elk Grove, Hanover, Schaumburg, Palatine and Wheeling townships. That's a population of about 750,000, Murphy estimated, calling it comparable to DuPage and Lake counties.