Houlihan seeks second term on county's board of review

by Kevin Olsen
From The Regional News

Palos Heights resident Brendan Houlihan is running for re-election to the Cook County Board of Review.

A Democrat, Houlihan has fought to lower the property tax burden on working families in Cook County during his first term, he said. He thinks he has done a good job the last three years and is looking to continue to get the message out to the public on the benefits of the Board of Review.

Houlihan was first elected in 2006 when he unseated Republican Maureen Murphy, of Evergreen Park, as District 1 commissioner. The three-member Board of Review is elected from three geographical districts within Cook County. District 1 consists of the suburbs of Chicago.

Houlihan has held more than 200 programs and seminars in his district to ensure that no homeowner pays more than his or her fair share of property taxes. Those seminars took place before his time in office, but he has expanded them across the county to make sure every family is fairly assessed.

“Through my system of public seminars, I have helped thousands of taxpayers navigate the appeal system and obtain relief from an overly burdensome property tax,” Houlihan said.

He will be hosting a petition drop-off party next Thursday, Oct. 15, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at Jack Desmond’s Pub, 10339 Ridgeland Ave., in Chicago Ridge. Tickets are $25 or free with a completed petition. There will be complimentary food and beverages as supporters gather to kick-off the campaign and raise money.

During his first year in office, Houlihan aided thousands of suburban homeowners in protesting their taxes, filing complaints and winning nearly $275 million in total tax cuts, an average of $2,000 in assessment reductions per homeowner.

One of Houlihan’s top priorities if elected to a second term is to create an online filing process for property tax appeals. He said taxpayers are now burdened with the cumbersome process of filing their appeals in person and that it is inefficient and a barrier for the average taxpayer to file an appeal. He believes an online system would decrease operations cost and enable the Board of Review to do more with less.

“In tough economic times, working families are forced to do more with less,” Houlihan said. “Government should be no different.”

He wants the Board of Review to become more automated to create more openness and transparency. He said people are looking for ways to save money in the struggling economy and it is his job to make sure everyone is fairly assessed.

“If the people see fit to re-elect me, I promise to continue the fight for lower property taxes in Cook County.”

In response to the crash of the housing market, Houlihan offered unprecedented property tax relief to the Cook County taxpayers. He took the step of reopening the Board of Review for all of suburban Cook County, so that homeowners affected by foreclosures and bad mortgages could obtain property tax relief. More than 30,000 Cook County residents responded to this effort and thousands of homeowners paid less in property taxes, Houlihan said.

His goal is for residents to understand their tax bills, recognize their options and know how to appeal their assessment.

This is part of the October 8, 2009 online edition of The Reporter.

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