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Committee deadlocks on motion to send grocery-tax removal to board after split votes
Summary
Trustees debated whether to recommend eliminating the locally enacted grocery tax (suspended by the governor) and whether to place the question on the Board agenda. A motion to send a recommendation to the Board failed on a tied committee vote.
Committee members debated whether the Village should act to reinstate or to eliminate a local grocery-sales tax that state law made optional after recent changes to state tax policy. Staff briefed the committee on the policy background: the governor had suspended a previous arrangement and municipal bodies were being given the option to reinstate a local grocery tax; the Illinois Municipal League (IML) and other organizations had developed guidance on reinstatement.
Staff presented estimated household impacts and municipal revenue: per packet materials, the aggregate revenue at stake for Roscoe was described as roughly $100,000 annually if the village enacted the tax; staff said estimates showed individual household impacts would be small in dollar terms but that the aggregate was meaningful for local budgets (the packet compared quintiles and noted the potential revenue could support items such as an entry-level police officer).
Trustees debated the policy and local economic implications. Supporters said many neighboring communities are reinstating the tax and that the village would forgo an estimated $100,000 in general fund revenue if it did not act. Opponents raised concerns about potential harm to the village’s grocery store (Schnucks) and retail competitiveness and cited constituent opposition to the idea.
A trustee moved to send a negative recommendation (to eliminate the grocery tax) to the Board; another trustee withdrew a second and a motion was offered to send the matter to the Board. That motion resulted in a recorded tie in committee and therefore failed to carry forward. The transcript records the committee vote as a 2–2 tie (motion fails), with members split and no final committee recommendation forwarded to the Board at that time.
Why it matters: The grocery-sales tax is a policy lever that can raise locally controlled revenue; the committee’s split reflects trade-offs between small household impacts and the village’s operating budget needs.
What’s next: Because the committee did not reach a majority recommendation, the mayor or trustees may place the matter on a future Board agenda for a full Board vote or otherwise pursue constituent outreach prior to action.
