In Champaign, Illinois, where property taxes rank third highest in the nation with respect to home values and where median incomes are shrinking the fastest, the township was seeking to pass a major property tax increase for the second time in as many election cycles. The Champaign County Association of REALTORS® turned to Illinois REALTORS® for help opposing the referendum – a delicate task, as the tax revenue was being sought to fund a new homeless shelter. With polling resources and an Issues Mobilization grant from the REALTOR® Party, they mounted a campaign to dissuade the voters from accepting the additional burden.
Gideon Blustein, Illinois REALTORS®’ Senior Director of Advocacy Programs, notes that there was effectively no opposition to the homeless shelter. “In fact, the liberal-leaning university town was likely to favor a new shelter, and the REALTORS® only objected to the method of funding it. But the local association made it clear that the community simply couldn’t afford the tax increase, and we knew that the added tax burden would disproportionately hurt lower- and middle-income households, pushing them further toward the edge, and even homelessness, themselves.”
In their mission to educate and persuade voters, the REALTORS® had one significant advantage: they had recently conducted a statewide polling and focus-group research project, giving them granular insight into the demographics, values, and voting patterns of communities across Illinois. Says Blustein, “We were able to identify the messages that would resonate strongly with local voters and put together a campaign that broke through existing inclinations.”
As the seat of the state’s flagship university, he continues, Champaign Township boasts one of the most highly educated electorates that NAR’s contract pollster had ever seen. So, the REALTORS® designed a campaign that was less emotional, and heavy on facts, data, and citations – almost like an academic paper. All of its messaging answered the question: What happens to this community when taxes are raised by this amount? “It focused entirely on the already-high property taxes in the township, and the fact that it was now asking for an increase,” says Blustein. “Then we highlighted what this would mean for the local cost of living, especially for those already living on the edge in terms of housing.” Mindful of the social sensitivities of the area’s progressive voters, the campaign never addressed the shelter issue and emphasized that the increased tax obligation would force more residents into homelessness.
Because it was an especially sensitive campaign, they didn’t want the local association to experience any surprises. Blustein and his team were careful to involve the local AE and GAD, and by extension, their board and Government Affairs Committee, in reviewing all the direct mail pieces, digital ads, and streaming television ads before they were launched strategically over the course of the election season.
What was looking like a very tight race going into election day became a remarkable win: the measure was defeated by 59%, bearing out the results of all the polling and focus groups. “That statewide research will be informing our strategies for years to come!” proclaims Blustein. He is careful to point out, however, that the victory, though welcome, is not a cause for celebration, but rather a further mandate to work toward housing affordability and solving the root causes of homelessness throughout the state.
To learn more about how Illinois REALTORS® is working with local associations to reject unfair property tax increases, contact Gideon Blustein, Senior Director of Advocacy Programs, at gblustein@illinoisrealtors.org or 847.899.1873.
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