CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- An Equal Justice group is suing Cook County Government and the Treasurer over the practice of allowing homes with unpaid tax bills to essentially be seized by others.
The group Legal Action Chicago is filing a lawsuit against Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas and the County itself, alleging that their Delinquent Property Tax Sales are discriminatory. The class action suit said Black and Latino homeowners are disproportionately affected.
The system allows a so-called tax buyer to purchase the delinquent taxes and even take control of the property if the owner doesn't pay the unpaid taxes plus interest.
Many low-income homeowners have just one asset to pass on to future generations: the value of their home," said John Bouman, Director of Legal Action Chicago and co-counsel for the plaintiffs in a statement.
"By depriving homeowners who fail to pay their property taxes of the entire value of this asset, and by disproportionately affecting Black and Latino homeowners, the tax sale system widens the racial wealth gap that has plagued this region for years."
Ironically, Treasurer Maria Pappas has long complained that the practice is discriminatory, and has issued reports backing up the assertion, but it's her office that administers the tax sales despite her opposition to it.
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