Illinois Sucks

Those who live here know the terrific roads and wonderful government, but come on.

http://www.wrex.com/story/22890215/2013/07/19/illinois-puts-a-price-on-fun-in-the-water

Before heading down the river to inner tube, or hit up the lake to kayak or canoe, be sure you've paid the price. As of July 1st, in Illinois, you are now required to carry a $6 Water Use Sticker for all non-powered watercraft. Before this regulation, titling and registration were needed for things like kayaks and canoes. Those are no longer required. Also, life jackets are now required for all non-powered watercraft, including inner tubes. Operators of tubes can be arrested for OWI. Water Use Stickers can be purchased at any DNR point-of-sale vendor. They are valid from January 1st-December 31st.

While I support getting rid of titles and registration for kayaks and canoes, a sticker for an inner tube every year is asinine. Also OWI for being in an inner tube...

Wow, I just sent this to my step-daughter as this is how she's spent most of the summer so far. She'll be bummed for sure.

One ex governor just got out of prison leaving us with only one ex governor currently in prison.

After my kid finishes school I will be moving out of Illinois.

Wait you have to pay to register yor boat then pay a $6 use tax per trip or is that once per year?

There are few details in that article.

Registration of canoes is fairly common. I don't get the beef, plus $6 per year is peanuts. I'd pay it if it kept more yahoos off the water.

They want everything that floats, including non boats, registered, or so it sounds. Registered pool noodles? Forcing consenting adults to wear a life vest irks me too.

The only thing I am going to say, is that I'm fine with OWIs with tubes. If I can get one in a Canoe, so should the shiny happy people I encounter during my peaceful canoe trip. I've been there, and I get tired of it.

One more thing, I don't know what the problem is with the $6 for the year. That's nothing. A one day fishing license for Illinois $10.

how long before they consider a life jacket to be in the same class as an inner tube and make you pay a fee for them?

what about water wings- do you pay per person, or per piece?

this is the kind of stuff that proves just how bad the economy is- they are finding more creative "fees" to raise money to fund the pet projects that the politicians promised to their buddies to get them elected.

They've got to pay off the unions somehow!

Taxing water fun, what next air?

Wally wrote:

Best 1st reply evar.

I live in Illinois. I like my town, love my house, but HATE my county and state. I want to build a fence around my house, but the law says I must first get a survey of my lot, which costs EIGHT-HUNDRED DOLLARS. Oh and if you have two simultaneous projects which would individually require a survey (say, a fence and an addition) you must pay for the survey twice!

Also, my property tax is ridiculously high because we are paying for a multimillion-dollar airport which no one wanted or is using (Mid-America). And then, there's East St.Louis...

Come to Indiana......we can say we're better than Ohio or Illinois......plus we have cookies.

yamaha wrote: Come to Indiana......we can say we're better than Ohio or Illinois......plus we have cookies.

Unfortunately all the people we don't like are moving to Indiana.

In reply to SyntheticBlinkerFluid:

I am still surprised we haven't successfully ceded northwest Indiana to Illinois. They wouldn't know what to do with Gary and Chicago in the same state though.

JamesMcD wrote: which costs EIGHT-HUNDRED DOLLARS.

That's cheap. In the northeast that is 2500 in some towns.

I also pay $8k a year in taxes on the house, 1 acre lot raised ranch built in 1968, plus I pay car taxes. It's all relative man. You want a nice place to live with good services, like amazing schools/libraries, you gotta pay.

Wow! So if some goober drives through a flood and gets swept away, they will get a fine for not displaying the water use sticker?.

Fueled by Caffeine wrote:

JamesMcD wrote: which costs EIGHT-HUNDRED DOLLARS.

That's cheap. In the northeast that is 2500 in some towns. I also pay $8k a year in taxes on the house, 1 acre lot raised ranch built in 1968, plus I pay car taxes. It's all relative man. You want a nice place to live with good services, like amazing schools/libraries, you gotta pay.

Problem is, we're paying for lawyers to put our crooked political idiots in prison, and the schools are not going to be so great when all the good teachers start leaving because their pension is gone because of said crooked politicians.

It's worse in Wisconsin. Don't come up here.

This is were we like to go. They give you a tube for the cooler to float on and you strap the tubes together. Great fun.

SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: The only thing I am going to say, is that I'm fine with OWIs with tubes. If I can get one in a Canoe, so should the shiny happy people I encounter during my peaceful canoe trip. I've been there, and I get tired of it.

NOTHING ruins a nice float trip than a crowd of yahoo shiny happy people with a boombox and a case or two of Bud.

Fueled by Caffeine wrote:

JamesMcD wrote: which costs EIGHT-HUNDRED DOLLARS.

That's cheap. In the northeast that is 2500 in some towns. I also pay $8k a year in taxes on the house, 1 acre lot raised ranch built in 1968, plus I pay car taxes. It's all relative man. You want a nice place to live with good services, like amazing schools/libraries, you gotta pay.

we pay about 9.5k in taxes for an 1/8th acre (actually less) in ILL, mediocre schools at best. Our state income tax increased 67%. Chicago public schools are known to be some of the worst in the country. The state is regularly rated as the worst run/worst financial condition of the country - investment ratings have been downgraded multiple times - meaning we also pay higher interest rates on the debt. Yes. It costs more to live in nice places - this ain't that nice...Basically to dig out of the hole, there's only a few options: raise taxes, cut spending/programs/benefits, raise fees - making it even less of a value.

Where does the sticker go?

In reply to pinchvalve:

On her face.

I hate Illinois. Terrible gas, stupid toll roads everywhere, bad food, etc.

I'm 'technically' not allowed to drive in Indiana. Something to do with not paying a ticket for like 3 years or some BS. Suspended my license from 2006-2010. Weird crap... I dunno, I have no desire to go there.

Ohio's better than both. why?

Only bad part about Ohio are the staties.

I'd move to Michigan if the insurance wasn't such a giant dickpain, and the roads were better than Ohio.

In reply to beans:

Illinois isn't that bad and food depends where you go just like any other state. There are a lot of good places to eat.

All the Illinois Toll Roads are all on the North side of the state where (SUPRISE!!) Chicago is.

FWIW I lived in Ohio for 3 years. If it wasn't for 98% of the drivers not being able to drive, it could be a reasonable place to live.

yamaha wrote: In reply to SyntheticBlinkerFluid: I am still surprised we haven't successfully ceded northwest Indiana to Illinois. They wouldn't know what to do with Gary and Chicago in the same state though.

Gary would just become the new South Side, which it already is, it would just be official.

http://youtu.be/-hyUdVz-5lU