PRESS RELEASE: Costello Falsely Claims Red Bud City Leaders Raise Property Taxes

David Friess
Sep 5, 2018 · 3 min read

Jerry Costello Jr. Attacks Good Government in Red Bud to Distract From Failed Record

RED BUD — Jerry Costello Jr. has sent out several mailers claiming that David Friess, candidate for 116th State Representative, has, along with the other members of the Red Bud City Council and Mayor, approved “slamming families” with massive increases in property taxes.

David Friess and Red Bud leaders are speaking out and demanding that Jerry Costello Jr. apologize for attacking a fiscally prudent and growing town as he desperately tries anything to keep hold of his inherited power. Friess defended his home saying, “I’m proud to call Red Bud my home. Jerry is denigrating the work Red Bud has done to maintain safety, support a thriving downtown, and encourage economic growth. He should apologize to city leaders, including the mayor, for falsely claiming we are shamelessly raising everyone’s property taxes.”

City alderman are confused by the incumbent state representative’s fuzzy math more than anything. “I’m not sure where Jerry got his numbers. Over the last 4 years, our spending has been virtually stagnant. If anything, the city’s portion of the property tax bill has decreased because of our growing tax base in Red Bud. I wish Jerry would stick to the facts,” explained Red Bud Alderman, Glenn Linnertz.

It’s clear that when Jerry Costello Jr. can’t defend his own failures, he will mislead voters in order to distract. When it comes to spending and taxes, the two candidate’s records could not be more different:

The Jerry Costello Jr. Record on Spending and Taxes:

  • Voted to increase state spending by BILLIONS.
  • Voted for 5 unbalanced state budgets.
  • Voted to increase debt by $16 BILLION.
  • Voted for a state budget unbalanced by $7 BILLION — which would have required working families to pay $1,000 more in income taxes to cover.

Sources: Budget Bill Roll Calls for 5/26/16, 5/26/15, 5/27/15, 5/29/15, 5/27/14, 5/28/13, 5/31/13, 5/30/12, Costello Voted YEA, ilga.gov

The David Friess Record on Spending and Taxes:

  • David has voted (in the majority) to keep Red Bud spending virtually flat since taking office. Adjusted for inflation, spending has actually decreased from the year prior to David taking office to this most recent fiscal year.
  • The property tax rate for the city of Red Bud’s portion of resident’s tax bill has also seen virtually no change.
  • The tax base (EAV) for the city of Red Bud has grown by $6 million since Friess took office. With EAV continuing to grow and a cut in city spending for FY 19, Red Bud residents will most likely see a lower city rate on their next property tax bill than they did prior to Friess taking office over three years ago.

Sources: Randolph County Tax Computation Reports, Red Bud City Budgets, Red Bud City Tax Levy Ordinances

David Friess and city leaders have clear results over the last four years of holding the line on spending and taxes, while growing their economy and tax base. Jerry and Mike Madigan could learn a thing or two from Red Bud.

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Learn more at DavidFriess.com

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