Mayor Rahm Emanuel is proposing a historic property tax increase, while expanding fees on trash collection and taxi rides under a plan to confront a growing fiscal crisis in the nation’s third largest city, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The proposal comes months into the second term of Emanuel, a former congressman and chief of staff to President Barack Obama, as he runs out of options to address ballooning pension costs that are coming due. During his first term, the mayor focused on trying to gain concessions from city workers and retirees, but was stymied by the courts and organized labor. Emanuel’s plan would raise an additional $544 million from property taxes alone phased in over four years under what is being described as the largest tax rise in city history. He also proposes raising additional revenue by taxing e-cigarettes, expanding fees on garbage pickup, and adding fees on taxi and ride-sharing services.
