Kane County Raises Property Taxes Again

& D303 Wants $300 Million more - total disregard to kane taxpayers

At what point is enough finally enough?

Two of Kane County's largest cities already rank among the communities with the highest property-tax burdens in America.  According to a 2025 SmartAsset analysis of 343 cities nationwide, Aurora ranks seventh and Elgin ranks 12th nationally for property-tax burden. Aurora homeowners devote 5.83% of their income to property taxes, while Elgin homeowners devote 5.46%.

These aren't rankings of a handful of obscure communities. They are two of the largest cities in Kane County — and they are already among the 20 highest property-tax-burdened cities in the entire COUNTRY...not the state, not the county, but the country.

But it's not enough for the Kane County Board.  Their response?   

Raise taxes again.

The Kane County Board approved an approximately $2.3 million increase in the county's property-tax levy.

And that decision comes at a particularly bad time for homeowners who are already facing significant increases from other taxing bodies.  Oh...and per the article, "the amount individual property owners will pay has not yet been determined."   How convenient...

St. Charles and Campton Hills taxpayers have an even bigger problem

For residents of St. Charles and Campton Hills who live within St. Charles Community Unit School District 303, the county tax increase is only one piece of the problem.  D303 has placed a proposed $295.6 million facilities investment before voters.  According to D303's own estimates, a homeowner with a $500,000 home could pay approximately $687 more per year, or roughly $57 more every month, if the proposal is approved.

That is nearly $700 a year ADDITION (not a base, but addition) from one taxing district.

Now add another increase from Kane County.

And then consider the other taxing bodies that appear on the same property-tax bill — the municipality, township, park district, library, fire protection district and other governmental entities.

Each one can argue that its individual increase is reasonable.  But homeowners don't receive a separate bill for each taxing district.  They receive one property-tax bill.

Government doesn't get to spend taxpayers' money in a vacuum

This is the problem with continually evaluating tax increases one taxing body at a time.

A $2.3 million increase may not sound enormous when viewed strictly from the county's perspective.

But taxpayers don't pay "the county tax."  They pay the cumulative property-tax burden imposed by every taxing body.  And Kane County homeowners are already carrying an enormous burden.

SmartAsset's national analysis demonstrates just how serious the situation has become. Aurora ranks #7 in the country and Elgin #12 when measuring property taxes as a percentage of homeowner income.

That should be a warning sign to every elected official in Kane County.  Instead, taxpayers are being told to pay more.

What happens when kane keeps taking?

This isn't an argument that Kane County should never raise taxes.  There are legitimate circumstances in which governments need additional revenue.  But they haven't addressed their spending addiction.  It's so gross.  The spending has increased over 44% countywide since Corinne Pierog took office as the chair in 2020. 

And when a county is located in a region where two of its major cities rank among the top 20 property-tax burdens in the nation, the burden of proof should be extraordinarily high before asking homeowners for another increase.  She doesn't care and it appears that most of the board doesn't either. 

Kane County officials should first demonstrate that every reasonable effort has been made to cut expenses and control spending, eliminate waste, prioritize essential services and find efficiencies.

Tax increases should be the last resort — not the easiest solution.  But if you've been to a board meeting over the last year, many of the board members seem to act as if they'd sacrifice a body part or a family member before cutting an expense.

D303 makes the timing even worse

For St. Charles and Campton Hills homeowners, the situation is particularly concerning.

They are potentially being asked to approve a $295.6 million D303 facilities plan at the same time local government continues to increase the property-tax burden.  A homeowner with a $500,000 property could be looking at approximately $687 more every year from D303 alone.  That is money that comes directly out of a family's household budget.  For many families, $687 represents a car payment, several utility bills, a significant grocery expense or money that could otherwise go toward savings. 

And that is before accounting for the cumulative impact of every other taxing district.

The question taxpayers should be asking

The question isn't whether Kane County can justify another $2.3 million.

The question is whether Kane County taxpayers can continue to afford the cumulative tax increases being imposed by local government. When Aurora ranks seventh nationally and Elgin ranks 12th nationally for property-tax burden, elected officials should be asking how they can reduce the burden on homeowners — not how much more they can collect.  And when St. Charles and Campton Hills homeowners are simultaneously facing the possibility of another $687 per year from a nearly $300 million D303 referendum, the decision to increase the county levy becomes even harder to defend.  Kane County homeowners don't have an unlimited supply of money. 

Neither does any family.

At some point, elected officials need to recognize that "just another increase" isn't just another increase to the homeowner. It is one more charge added to a property-tax bill that is already among the highest in America.  Kane County taxpayers should be asking a very simple question:

How much is enough?

For many homeowners, the answer is becoming increasingly clear:  Enough is enough.