Developers don't always live up to the expectations we have of them for property tax rebates, but the Chicago city council's decision to revoke these tax benefits didn't have any real substance and hasn't been successful in addressing the real issues. There has still not been any serious work to stop permits for companies with poor track records, and certain areas continue to be disproportionately affected. 

The plan was to retroactively revoke tax breaks for companies that don't work up to a certain standard. The mechanisms and criteria for enforcing it were not made clear. It also doesn't apply to the contracts already in place, so corporations like Hilco, which got $19.7 million in tax breaks, will still not be punished.

Moreover, the city officials haven't always been transparent with the public, especially with the Southsiders. One example of this is when City health officials claimed that a proposed expansion of RMG’s metal recycling facility would not have adverse health effects (although in February of 2022, the Chicago Department of Public Health denied the permit application by RMG, the parent company of General Iron). 

Apart from lacking transparency, the bigger issue at play is that the city is continuing to approve new permits to polluters. It seems like the City is not really interested in dealing with the root cause of the problem. Even in the case of Hilco, for example, the City approved them to work, despite environmental justice advocates raising concerns from the beginning. 

Continuing to approve permits also ignores the growing calls to end environmental racism being perpetuated in the City. General Iron (whose parent company is RMG) previously operated on the predominantly white North side, but it was allowed to move to the East. Hilco operated in the South, despite concerns from environmental justice groups. The council's plans have not done anything to address these issues. 

The City wanted to make a splash with this ordinance, but in truth, they still haven't achieved anything concrete. In the words of Anthony Moser, a board member of Neighbors for Environmental Justice, “it feels a lot like the city is trying to have a couple big splashy things so they can have those things to point to."

The rebate revocation plan may help the mayor and the City council with public relations, but it hasn't changed anything about the environment in general. The City continues to ignore more pressing issues of lack of transparency, continuation of permits to companies with bad track records and environmental racism. Any hope of a tangible environmental reform needs to consider these problems first.