On Nov. 6, River Forest residents will be asked if they are ready to allow their village to become a home rule community. The decision, which is a major one, will be settled by referendum vote on Election Day.
So what is home rule? It is a change in the relationship between a municipal government and the state government. Home rule communities assume greater independence from the strictures of Springfield and its legislators and are allowed to make choices locally on a range of issues previously dictated from the state capital.
Most Illinois communities are already home rule by virtue of population level. Any burg over 25,000 is automatically home rule. In addition many communities have sought and earned home rule status by virtue of local referendum.
While the idea of seeking home rule has been studied and discussed in River Forest before – most recently in 2006 – it has never before come to a vote. Now, the current village board has put the question on the ballot.
We strongly support home rule and here’s why: We have faith in the village government of River Forest – both the elected officials chosen by voters and in the administrative staff who run the village day-to-day. Over decades, village officials have proven to be thoughtful in their leadership and modest in their ambitions for local government. That doesn’t mean we have always agreed with those officials or their decisions. But we trust them.
Opponents, and they are well-meaning, picture a local government run-a-muck with higher taxes, borrowing, insider deals and extravagant initiatives pushing the bounds of local governance. Where do these grand fears come from? Blame it on Bridgeview and the Trib expose that followed as one answer. That southwest suburban community exploded home rule and built a white elephant of a soccer stadium that is going to sink this small blue collar town.
But beyond the Bridgeview bogeyman, local opponents of home rule simply distrust government. It coincides with a prevalent fever sweeping the country right now where government at every level is suspect. We’re not buying it. We believe in government’s role, imperfectly though it might be exercised at times. Especially we believe in local government where decisions are made by neighbors who are elected, and can be unelected, too.
River Forest trustees have already gone to lengths to address the basic fear of opponents that home rule will lead to ruinous property tax hikes. The board has stitched into the home rule ballot question a requirement that the village abide by existing tax cap limits. Opponents, for whom government can do no right, see only the out clauses the village board properly built in to that equation. We see a fair minded attempt by the village to temper concerns.
Home rule allows a local government to take on powers which would otherwise be left in the hands of state legislators. If there is a discredited bunch of politicos on the loose it is those ineptly ruling Springfield. Having power devolve from Springfield to River Forest is the right direction.
We see River Forest as a well governed, problem-solving, locally attuned municipality. Home rule slightly extends the reach of that government to do its work even better.