John Zbesko: The question of separate taxing bodies

At this late stage in the campaign for 7th ward alderman, several issues have arisen that truly allow the voters to draw distinctions between the candidates. However, on the issue of a separate taxing district for the library system, I'm not quite sure what my opponent, Jane Grover, thinks.

At the CSNA forum in February, Ms. Grover told some history about the library system in Evanston. There used to be a separate district that was consolidated into the general fund a number of years ago. She went on to say, “What that meant to the library system [was] a large degree of transparency and accountability of funding.”
http://centralstreetneighbors.com/?q=node/543

However, in her most recent blog, she states, “And while we have an excess of taxing bodies in Illinois, the separate existence of a taxing body increases the expectation of transparency and accountability for that entity’s levy and budget.”
http://centralstreetneighbors.com/?q=node/557

So, which is it? Does a separate taxing district increase or decrease transparency and accountability? The answer, I believe, is neither. Another example of a taxing district is the North Shore Mosquito Abatement District, of which I am a Trustee. The NSMAD used to have a reputation  as a patronage operation and several scandals were uncovered. Former trustees resigned; the Board operated with several vacancies for a while and then Comm. Larry Suffredin had three new Trustees appointed.
http://www.zbesko.org/NSMAD_Scandal.rtf

Today, I can report that NSMAD is in excellent fiscal and operational shape. Our Board minutes and audited Annual Report are available at http://www.nsmad.com The choice of Trustees and Superintendent are key. Sort of like the City Council and the City Manager. But Jeff Smith, in his question to the candidates, suggested that a separate library district have an elected board. I'm skeptical- in the current school board races, there are barely enough candidates to fill all the positions. How many candidates can we expect for a library board? How many votes would be cast?

I agree with 6th ward candidate Mark Sloane, who felt that a separate district would simply add another layer of overhead. Consider the Township of Evanston, for which voters will elect an assessor and supervisor and whose budget is set by the City Council. Or consider School Districts 202 and 65, with two superintendents, both of whom earn more than $200K annually. By comparison, the superintendent of the Chicago Public School system also makes about the same.

My reason for not supporting a separate tax district was my opposition to new ways of taxing people. Ms. Grover makes the statement, “Creating a separate taxing body, ... doesn’t necessarily lead to increased taxes.” I leave it to the voters to decide whether they believe that.