For my fellow seniors on the job-hunt, one popular destination just got a little less desirable.

I am referring to Chicago, and it is getting less alluring because Mayor Rahm Emanuel has just approved a reform that will raise property taxes in the city a record $750 million over the next 5 years.

Given that citizens of Chicago already pay the second-highest property tax in the country, a lot of people are up in arms over the new reform. 

Chicago has once again set a precedent that its citizens will shoulder the burden of misspending by the government, and those who will be most affected are recent-graduates much like ourselves who are looking to rent apartments within the city limits.

There are several reasons why this new reform will only hurt the city further as it tries to climb its way out of debt. The most important of which being that for the past couple decades, people have been abandoning Chicago for nearby suburbs or states.

This problem will only increase if new property taxes are enforced with more on the way. Making your city less fiscally attractive to live in is no way to solve a debt crisis that was created by careless spending in the first place.

Government workers in Chicago have extraordinarily generous pension plans that allow most of those who work for the government to retire in their 50s. This is part of the careless spending that has gotten our city so far in debt that Chicago’s bonds have now officially been downgraded to junk bonds by Moody’s Investors Services.

Not only will raising property taxes force citizens to consider moving out of the city, but this reform will also deter large corporations from settling in Chicago. All companies are concerned with their profit margins, and increasing property taxes is sure to drive out at least a few businesses.

What this all comes down to is that while Emanuel is raising property taxes to generate more revenue, he will actually be declining revenue for the city by decreasing its income from these citizens and corporations that will move out of Chicago if the cost of living raises past a certain point. 

So what will all of this additional revenue be put towards in the city? Healthcare? Education? Nope, it’s actually going towards more pensions. However, the pensions that the money will go towards are policemen and firemen who have extremely under-budgeted pensions at the moment. The problem is, even if the entire $750 million went to funding pensions for policemen and firemen, there still wouldn’t be enough to cover the deficit the government is currently in.

Chicago is the third biggest city in the country, and the biggest hub for businesses that U of I students look to for jobs. Almost every major company that has a location in Chicago comes down for one of our career fairs throughout the year. As a result, many students end up in Chicago after graduation.

The problem here is two-fold. As previously stated, companies may be less inclined to stay in Chicago due to higher operating costs for these businesses. This can directly influence employment rates at the University negatively, given that there will be fewer companies that recruit on-campus.

Additionally, even if one does find a job, graduates will be forced to hand over much of their entry-level salary just for the right to live in Chicago.

While certain measures must be taken in order to get out of the debt the city is currently facing, increasing property taxes is not the way to go about it. Especially when you consider all the other ways Chicago nickels and dimes its citizens, like having the most red-light cameras of any city in the country. Chicago must begin to look out more for its citizens, instead of taxing them to fix the government’s errors.

Hopefully, University students looking to live in Chicago can all look forward to paying only the second-highest property taxes in the country after graduation.

Jason Schwartz is a senior in LAS.

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