The purpose of this report is to provide the City of Chicago’s Mayor and City Council with detailed recommendations on ways to address the City’s serious financial challenges and create a government that is more efficient, less costly and more accountable. On February 14, 2011, the Civic Federation released Financial Challenges for the New Mayor which identifies the most significant fiscal issues…
UPDATE: The proposal to allow the Blue Park Gun Club the use of Forest Preserve District property for its operations was withdrawn, after significant urging from the Friends of the Forest Preserve. Cook County Commissioner Joan Murphy, one of the sponsors of the resolution, withdrew the proposal when Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said she would not support the issue. Commissioner…
In this article about the first budget cuts City of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has made to help restore solvency to the City’s finances, the Civic Federation says that the cuts are a good first step, but deeper reductions must be made to fill the City’s budget deficit.
This article discusses how City of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel may confront the City’s major budget issues. The Civic Federation explains that the problems were exacerbated by a long-standing unwillingness to reduce spending. The Federation also suggests that the City will need to reduce personnel levels to help fill its budget deficit.
This article discusses the issues City of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel must confront as he works to restore fiscal health to the City’s finances. The Civic Federation says that the City must reduce personnel costs and adequately fund its pension systems to improve its finances.
This article compares fire department staffing levels in Chicago to other large American cities and finds that the City of Chicago’s staffing level ranks third, behind New York City and Philadelphia. The Civic Federation says that the City should consider reducing its ranks of public safety personnel to bring staffing levels in line with the actual needs of the community.
A key component of Cook County’s plan to remake its public health system was rejected by a State of Illinois board on May 10, 2011, adding to concerns that the County might have difficulties implementing its FY2011 budget. At a meeting in Joliet, the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board (Health Facilities Board) rejected by one vote the request to end inpatient and emergency room…
The Civic Federation sent the following letter to the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board in support of a plan by the Cook County Health and Hospitals System to discontinue acute-care hospital services at Oak Forest Hospital in favor of expanded outpatient care. As discussed previously on this blog, the Review Board rejected the plan by a vote of 3 to 2 on March 21, 2011. Under…
In this interview, Civic Federation President Laurence Msall and Chicago 32nd Ward Alderman Scott Waguespack discuss Chicago Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel’s proposal to reduce the size of the Chicago City Council. Mr. Msall says that the City’s enormous fiscal troubles require drastic moves to improve delivery of City services.
In this blog post, Greg Hinz discusses the conclusions of the Civic Federation's "Cook County Modernization 100-Day Accountability Report." The Federation found that administration of County Board President Toni Preckwinkle has made considerable progress in modernizing operations, but still faces significant challenges over the next few years.
