The Kane County Board voted 16-8 Tuesday night to place a referendum on the November ballot asking voters to approve a half-cent increase in the county sales tax, with proceeds earmarked for road and bridge repairs that officials say can no longer be deferred. The measure, if approved by voters, would raise the county's portion of the sales tax from 0.25 percent to 0.75 percent and generate an estimated $38 million annually.
Board Chairman Corinne Ferris said the decision to let voters weigh in directly was the only responsible path forward given the county's $214 million backlog of deferred road maintenance. "We're not raising anyone's taxes tonight. We're asking permission," Ferris told a packed boardroom at the Kane County Government Center in Geneva. "Every year we wait, the cost of these repairs grows by eight to ten percent."