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If there's a government agency that you especially want to be free of any whiff of favoritism, it's the one that has something to do with your taxes. For years, allegations of conflicts of interests have dogged the Cook County Board of Review, the quasi-judicial body responsible for ruling on property tax assessment appeals. A clout-influenced decision in favor of a Loop skyscraper takes money out of your pocketbook.

The need for more transparency in the board's work is why we're endorsing political newcomer Jay Paul Deratany over 20-year incumbent Joseph Berrios in the Feb. 5 primary. Deratany has made a convincing case that he will join Larry Rogers Jr. and Brendan Houlihan, reformers elected to the board over the last four years, to reverse the board's history of bias toward downtown office towers and industrial properties represented by politically influential tax attorneys.

Look at the baggage Berrios, 56, carries. He was installed last year as Cook County Democratic chairman and is the 31st Ward committeeman, a man comfortable with old-style politics. A former legislator, Berrios does lobbying work in Springfield before lawmakers, some of whom practice before the review board. He takes campaign contributions from lawyers appealing tax assessments before the board.

Tax numbers suggest how that appearance of conflict affects you. The $2 billion in assessed valuation reductions awarded last year went to just 8 percent of properties in Cook County -- mostly commercial and industrial interests, according to figures compiled by Assessor James Houlihan, a Deratany backer. That translates into $335 million in actual tax reductions, which means someone else has to pick up the slack in county revenues.

Deratany, 46, also is backed by liberal reform politicians such as Rep. Jan Schakowsky and Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool. Citing Nelson Mandela as his personal hero, he built a reputation as a civic-minded attorney who has done pro bono work for children and adults with mental disabilities, the homeless, and people with HIV/AIDS. You might say that does not seem like the best background for an agency steeped in the arcana of property tax assessments. On the contrary, Claypool argues, "You really want someone who is a very good attorney. The board ought to have rules and opinions based on evidence and not politics."

Deratany pledges to refuse gifts and contributions from lawyers practicing before the board and to work for a code of ethics banning the practice. He also wants to create a Web-based system for homeowners to appeal their property tax assessments. Deratany sometimes sounds a bit like John Edwards in railing against "the wealthy and the corporate interests," but we believe his promise to see that every property-tax payer gets a fair shake.

We cannot tell whether Cook County Recorder of Deeds Gene Moore is phoning in this campaign or if his lackluster effort is the best he can do to fight for his job managing the county's real estate records. All we know is Ald. Ed Smith (28th) seems to really want the job. Considering his public service record, independence, energy and ideas, we say give it to him. Vote for Ed Smith on Feb. 5 for Cook County recorder of deeds.

To his credit, Moore, who has been recorder of deeds since 1999, has made some of the inevitable improvements the office needs, such as digitizing documents back to 1985 and providing records online. With the budget and will to continue computerizing and aggregating property ownership records, this innocuous, no-profile office can continue to provide its vital services.

This is why Smith's fresh ideas excite us. He has proposed further computerizing property ownership records and boosting data collection to provide better service and create additional revenue streams. Smith also promises to provide regular, free training on title searches and data access, provide multilanguage signage, revamp the office's Web site, and require professional staff dress and demeanor.

A former Peace Corps volunteer and teacher, Smith championed anti-smoking legislation in the City Council. He's a vegetarian with a penchant for soul food and has Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov on his bookshelf. He has got solid support, having been endorsed by the titular head of the local Democratic Party, Mayor Daley. Smith has come out strong with a bold TV ad campaign and has the endorsements that suggest time and momentum are on his side.

Moore, who has served in the Illinois General Assembly, is a Democratic Party stalwart who appears to be running out of steam. Moore has served well. But the recorder of deeds office could benefit from a fresh infusion of energy to continue nudging it into the 21st century.

 

Deratany, Smith for county posts

January 28, 2008-- Chicago Sun Times