The sticker shock from property taxes issued in November 2025 is due partly from a series of errors from the County and the inability to communicate effectively with constituents. You should not feel like the government acts in arbitrary ways, but that is what happens without proper accountability and transparency. 

• The way the County determines property taxes, which affects both homeowners directly and renters through landlords passing along the costs, is confusing. People need to understand this process so they can adequately prepare for any increases in their tax burden.

• You can’t fix problems without properly identifying them. Cook County is relying more and more on sales taxes and specialty taxes on things like tobacco, cannabis, hotels, gambling. But with a years-long trend of population decline in the County, this is not a long term strategy for stable revenue generation. The government needs to be honest to voters so proposed solutions make sense.

• You should know who your County Commissioner is and the functions of the County. If you do not, that reflects upon the failure of county politicians taking your vote for granted. As your Commissioner, Che-Che will be present for and responsive to you, the voter.

• We need to end gerrymandering in the County before 2030, the planning for this must start now. Che-Che will not support any County district map that disenfranchises voters through gerrymandering and is drawn without community input.

• The County needs to publish how money is being spent in more easily understandable formats outside the County’s annual budget book.

County government receives less attention than other levels of government, but it still has an impact on you and your family. We can and should do better to communicate with the people who live and work in our districts. As the Commissioner for Cook County District 12, Che-Che will lead with integrity and honesty to promote better government.