In recent years there has been renewed interest in developing and implementing a city charter for Chicago. A key theme in Ed Bachrach and Austin Berg’s 2019 book, The New Chicago Way: Lessons from Other Big Cities, is the idea that a city charter could help reform and strengthen the City’s governmental institutions. The 2023 joint series from Crain’s Chicago Business and the University…
Last week, the Civic Federation released its report, Financial Challenges Facing the Chicago Mayor and the City Council, which provided an overview of the City’s top financial challenges, options for additional revenue sources, financial management options to promote efficiencies and several recommendations. Among these recommendations was a call to expand the budget and authority of the City…
Throughout the 2023 Chicago mayoral campaign, Mayor Johnson stated that it was his intention to avoid increasing property taxes, citing concerns about the burden already placed on many Chicagoans. But, while the impact of property tax increases on individual homeowners and business owners is an important factor to consider, the new mayoral administration must also weigh the property tax in…
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Acting President Sarah Wetmore appears on WTTW's "Chicago Tonight"
Analysis also explores revenue options and offers recommendations for reform(CHICAGO) – The Civic Federation released a report today detailing the City of Chicago’s major financial challenges, as well as options and recommendations to continue to stabilize the City’s financial position. In May 2023, Brandon Johnson took office as Chicago’s new Mayor and 13 new alderpersons joined City Council.…
Click here to read the full report.Click here to read the press release for this report.INTRODUCTIONIn 2023 Chicago voters elected Brandon Johnson as the City’s new Mayor as well as a City Council with 13 new members. The City’s new political leadership will immediately face five major fiscal challenges:Recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the end of federal recovery funds;Chicago’s public…
With the upcoming implementation of an elected school board to oversee Chicago Public Schools, the governance of CPS will be separated from the City of Chicago. The 21-member elected school board, set to replace the existing seven-member board appointed by the Chicago mayor, will be phased in beginning in 2025, with the fully elected board in place beginning in 2027. The separation raises…
The City of Chicago has received a number of upgrades from credit rating agencies over the past year, for both the City’s long-term general obligation debt and other debt. City debt primarily consists of general obligation debt secured by a full faith and credit pledge of revenues, revenue debt secured by earmarked taxes and fees, Sales Tax Securitization Corporation debt, and tax increment…
