Merrionette Park, Ill., voters will get a chance soon to defeat a home rule initiative on the ballot. This mailer was sent to many households there.

Want a recipe for bad tax policy? Look no further than efforts by local municipalities to implement Home Rule status.

Merrionette Park is the latest community to try this approach, and IAR is working to help defeat the measure.

Home Rule ballot initiatives allow a municipality’s board to make local property tax decisions, not the taxpayers.  According to Illinois law, local governments “may exercise any power and perform any function pertaining to its government affairs.”

A municipality could also implement point-of-sale inspections or landlord/tenant ordinances which could layer on additional costs for renters or buyers and sellers.

“As we all know, when a local municipality is empowered with home rule authority it seems for many that they have a “blank check” to do how and what they feel, especially on the revenue side,” said Tom Joseph, a governmental affairs director for IAR.

IAR is working with local REALTORS® in Merrionette Park to stop the home rule effort. Already, a mailer is being sent to local residents warning them of the dangers of adopting the policy.

Learn more about Home Rule here.