Message from the Township Assessor

UPDATES FROM THE BLOOM TOWNSHIP ASSESSOR’S OFFICE 

Please call before you come in.

We urge all taxpayers to become familiar with the Cook County Assessor website for online filing of exemptions and appeals.

The 2nd installment property tax bill was mailed on December 1st, 2021 with a payment due date of December 30th, 2021.  You can now view your 2nd installment tax bill online at www.cookcountytreasurer.com. 

Tax Bill payments can be made online and any Chase Bank.

 Did any taxpayers have above average tax increases?

Most people receiving the Senior Freeze, an exemption that provides significant savings for low- to moderate-income senior citizens, experienced tax increases of about 10%. This increase is due to the complicated relationship between the Senior Freeze and property tax rates, which can lead to tax increases for qualifying seniors in some years and tax reductions in other years.

Can I do anything to reduce my current tax bill?

If you are eligible for a homeowner, senior citizen or disability exemption but did not receive one, the Township Assessor’s office can assist you in obtaining a revised bill for a smaller amount. If you received all exemptions for which you are eligible, however, you likely will not be able to reduce your current tax bill.

Can I do anything to reduce next year’s tax bills?

Bloom Township taxpayers can file appeals with the Cook County Board of Review.  If successful, those appeals will impact the taxes due on next year’s second installment bills. Residents may call Bloom Township at 708-754-98400 to get help in preparing appeals.

Why were second installment tax bills issued so late this year?

Cook County’s second installment tax bills are supposed to be paid by August 1 each year, and the county met this due date for most of the last decade. But this year’s December 30 due date has set a dubious record—the latest-ever due date for second installment tax bills in Cook County. The reason for this relates to the county tax appeal system.

Second installment property tax bills cannot be issued until all Cook County tax appeals are decided, first by the Cook County Assessor’s office, and then by the Cook County Board of Review. This year, a computer modernization project created compatibility problems between these agencies that led to a months-long delay in getting correct data from one agency to the other. As a result, the mailing of second installment property tax bills was delayed.

Do I have to pay another tax bill by March 1?

Probably not. During the legislative session that ended on December 1, 2022, the Illinois legislature passed a bill for Cook County that changed the due date for the upcoming first installment tax bills from March 1, 2023, to April 1, 2023. The bill, endorsed by the Cook County Township Assessors Association and other county and local government entities, won overwhelming support in the legislature. As of the writing of this article, the governor has not yet signed the bill, but he is expected to do so.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us at 708-754-9400 .

Nora Gomez, Assessor