This news segment details how the City of Chicago had only $2.7 million in reserves at the end of FY2009. The Civic Federation says the City should have cash reserves of at least $200 million given the size of its operating budget.
In this news segment, Civic Federation President Laurence Msall explains that restructuring the City of Chicago’s government is the only fix for the City’s unbalanced budget. Msall adds the City could institute a grid-based system for some City services instead of the current ward-based system in order to reduce costs.
Roughly a month ago, on July 1, 2010, Governor Pat Quinn announced that he planned to cut $1.1 billion from the $26.0 billion FY2011 State of Illinois budget previously approved by the General Assembly. At that time, the Governor did not say where $891 million of those spending cuts would be made. During the week of August 2, 2010, Governor Quinn revealed the specific reductions to agency budgets. As a result of the Governor’s actions, it is now possible to provide a more detailed comparison…
The Civic Federation will announce its support for the proposed $581.9 million FY2011 City Colleges of Chicago budget at a public hearing today. The Federation’s 41-page analysis found that the proposed budget plans a $3.0 million reduction in the City Colleges’ property tax levy while pursuing a reorganization plan that will centralize more administrative functions and increase programmatic specialization at its seven college campuses. Visit www.civicfed.org to download the report. “The Civic…
The Civic Federation supports the City Colleges FY2011 proposed budget totaling $581.9 million, which includes $454.4 million for the operating budget and $127.5 million for capital improvements. The City Colleges is proposing to reduce its property tax levy while pursuing a reorganization plan that will centralize more administrative functions and increase programmatic specialization at its seven college campuses. However, the Civic Federation is concerned with a predicted funding gap through…
This article is about how the City of Chicago’s unreserved 2009 cash balance of $2.7 million is indicative of major budget troubles. The Civic Federation says that a city as large as Chicago should have a budget reserve of at least $200 million and that Chicago is in a precarious financial position that will require a restructuring of its services.
On June 17, 2010 the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District held a study session to discuss office space options for the District’s administrative staff. Steve Weiss, owner of Weiss Architects LLC, presented a report on main office strategies that was commissioned by the District. Mr. Weiss explained that the District is projecting a 15% increase in office staff by 2013. As a result, the MWRD may require approximately 20% more office space to accommodate the new staff.[1] …
Despite a $2 billion drop in the State’s annual revenues in FY2010 , the General Assembly passed Governor Pat Quinn's proposal to provide a back-to-school sales tax holiday for Illinois consumers as part of the FY2011 budget. The State charges a composite rate of 6.25% on consumer purchases of most general merchandise from retailers in Illinois, but only 5% of that rate is the State’s share. The State also collects then passes along 1.0% for municipalities and .25% for county governments. The…
Last week the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Board of Commissioners held a public study session meeting to discuss its upcoming FY2011 budget and projections for what the financial year may hold. The picture staff painted was grim, with increasing expenses for the District while revenue projections remain flat. The District is projecting that health care expenses will rise by 12% or $6 million in FY2011 and noted that since FY2006 employee health insurance expenses have increased by…
Illinois’ increasing cost of borrowing is the focus of this article. The Civic Federation says businesses are reconsidering plans to invest in Illinois because of uncertainty over the State’s long-term tax policies and fiscal health.
