Chicago City Wire

FOIA Request to Cook County regarding tax relief requests for a veteran with disabilities on June 10, 2025.

On June 10, 2025, Chicago City Wire submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to Cook County. The request seeks access to records related to property tax relief and exemptions for veterans with disabilities and their surviving spouses for the tax year 2024 through the present. Specifically, the request includes documents showing individuals who have requested or received:

1. Property Tax Relief as a Veteran with a Disability or as a Surviving Spouse of a Disabled Veteran.

2. A Specially Adapted Housing Exemption for Veterans with Disabilities, pursuant to 35 ILCS 200/15-165.

3. A Standard Homestead Exemption for Veterans with Disabilities, pursuant to 35 ILCS 200/15-169.

4. A Returning Veteran’s Homestead Exemption, pursuant to 35 ILCS 200/15-172.

The FOIA request was made under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, 5 ILCS 140, and emphasizes the preference for receiving the information in electronic format. Chicago City Wire is committed to providing comprehensive news coverage on local governmental affairs and aims to hold public institutions accountable by ensuring transparency.

Chicago City Wire has also requested a fee waiver based on its role as a media organization involved in gathering and reporting news to the public. The organization believes that access to these public records is essential for fulfilling its professional responsibilities.

The requestor is affiliated with The Coalition Opposing Governmental Secrecy, a non-profit organization that assists media companies and advocacy groups in investigating governmental agencies using Freedom of Information and Sunshine Laws. More information about this coalition can be found at https://stopsecrecy.org/about/.

Cook County, located in Illinois, had an average student-to-teacher ratio of 14-to-1 during the 2022-23 school year, with over 672,009 students enrolled across its schools supported by approximately 48,761 full-time faculty members.

Our team will continue to keep you updated as we gather and report news related to this request and other matters of public interest. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or need further clarification regarding this matter.