The Civic Federation supports the Chicago Transit Authority’s (CTA) proposed FY2014 operating budget of nearly $1.4 billion. After two years of difficult but necessary steps to stabilize its operations, the CTA has produced a balanced budget with no fare increases. The FY2014 budget reflects significant steps taken by the CTA in recent years to match ongoing expenses with recurring revenues and break its habit of relying on one-time revenue sources. The Federation commends the significant…
A report released today by the Civic Federation uses nine indicators of financial condition to measure the relative financial performance of Chicago and 12 other major U.S. cities from FY2007 to FY2011. Of the cities analyzed, only Boston and Detroit consistently performed worse than Chicago by these metrics during the five-year period that encompasses the Great Recession and slow recovery. The full 56-page report is available at www.civicfed.org. “Chicago’s relative financial performance…
This report uses nine indicators of financial condition to measure the relative financial performance of Chicago and 12 other major U.S. cities from FY2007 to FY2011. In addition to Chicago, the other cities analyzed were Baltimore, Boston, Columbus, Detroit, Houston, Kansas City (MO), Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh and Seattle. Of the cities analyzed, only Boston and Detroit consistently performed worse than Chicago by these metrics during the five-year period that…
In a report released today, the Civic Federation supports the $178.8 million FY2014 budget proposed by the Forest Preserve District of Cook County. The budget holds the property tax levy flat and maintains substantial reserve funds. However, the Federation warns that these achievements are threatened by the declining health of the District’s pension fund. The full 57-page report is available at civicfed.org. “We applaud the steps taken by President Preckwinkle and Superintendent Randall to…
The Civic Federation supports the Forest Preserve District of Cook County’s FY2014 proposed $178.8 million budget that holds the property tax levy flat and maintains substantial reserve funds. However, the Federation warns that these achievements are threatened by the declining health of the District’s pension fund. The District’s reasonable budget plan is only possible because State law requires the District to contribute an inadequate amount to its pensions. The market value funded ratio of…
(The full content of this article is only available to the publication’s subscribers.) This article covers the release of the Civic Federation’s FY2014 Cook County Budget Analysis. The Civic Federation supports the proposed budget for holding the property tax levy flat and continuing to reduce the County’s deficit, but warns that rapidly declining pension funds could threaten that progress.
This article covers Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s October 10 address presenting her FY2014 recommended budget to the Cook County Board. The Civic Federation was supportive of initial details of the budget announcement including holding property taxes relatively flat. The Federation’s full Cook County FY2014 budget analysis was released on October 28.
This article looks at the nationwide increase of local governments and special taxing districts, focusing on Illinois’ 7,000 units of government. The Civic Federation urges greater oversight and consolidation of Illinois’ local governments. A 2006 Civic Federation report found that many Illinois townships and special taxing districts were continuing to levy property taxes despite having large fund balances in excess of one year’s spending.
In a report released today, the Civic Federation supports Cook County’s proposed FY2014 operating budget of $3.2 billion, which holds the property tax levy relatively flat by reducing expenditures and aggressively pursuing new revenue for the Cook County Health and Hospitals System under the federal Affordable Care Act. “This budget shows admirable restraint and forward thinking from Board President Preckwinkle and her leadership team,” said Laurence Msall, president of the Civic Federation. “…
The Civic Federation supports Cook County’s proposed FY2014 operating budget of $3.2 billion for holding the property tax levy relatively flat, reducing expenditures and aggressively pursuing new revenue for the Cook County Health and Hospitals System under the federal Affordable Care Act. The administration continues to stabilize the County budget without increasing the property tax burden on County taxpayers by showing admirable restraint and forward thinking. Although the County has taken…
