Cook County has received $1 billion in federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) and released its latest 2022 performance report mandated by the United States Department of Treasury this past summer. This blog post is the second in a series looking at local governments’ plans to use these funds and what they’ve spent so far. To read more about how Chicago plans to use its distribution of SLFRF and to read more about ARPA’s general reporting…
As part of the American Rescue Plan Act’s (ARPA’s) $350 million federal investment into Fiscal Recovery Funds at the state and local levels, the City of Chicago received a $1.9 billion infusion under the Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (LFRF) to mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] In compliance with Treasury Department guidelines, the City developed and released in September 2021 a comprehensive plan to “create an equity-based investment strategy to catalyze a sustainable economic…
On August 10, 2022, the City of Chicago released its annual Budget Forecast for FY2023. The Forecast provides financial estimates for the City’s current fiscal year ending December 31, 2022 and a forecast for the next three fiscal years. This was the fourth forecast produced by the Lightfoot administration pursuant to Executive Order No. 2019-3, which requires the financial forecast to be released no later than August 31 of each year. The forecast includes a general economic outlook, year-end…
The criminal justice system in Illinois is comprised of a multitude of different agencies and systems. This blog post will focus on the departments that make up the key criminal justice system agencies within Chicago and the State of Illinois, including agencies from three levels of government: municipal (City of Chicago), county (Cook County) and state (the State of Illinois). Each agency plays a role in the criminal legal system, although many criminal justice system agencies are…
The Civic Federation recently released its analysis of the Chicago Public Schools proposed FY2023 budget. The Federation opposed the budget because the District has not provided sufficient justification for raising its property tax to the maximum amount allowed under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL) at a time when taxpayers already face serious economic strains and when CPS has alternative options available. Despite opposition to this aspect of the budget proposal, the…
This blog post provides a high-level overview of personnel within the Chicago Police Department (CPD). The information presented includes both budgeted data based on the City of Chicago’s annual FY2022 budget and active, assigned sworn officer data based on public safety data dashboards available on the Office of Inspector General website. Budgeted CPD Personnel The Chicago Police Department has a total of 14,058 personnel positions budgeted across all funds in FY2022, including both sworn…
On June 23, 2022, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle issued a preliminary budget forecast for fiscal year 2023. The fiscal year begins December 1, 2022 and ends November 30, 2023. The report provides end-of-year estimates for the current 2022 fiscal year and a forecast for the upcoming 2023 fiscal year in the County’s operating funds. The operating funds include the General Fund, which accounts for administrative and public safety operations, and the Health Fund, which accounts for…
Click here to read the full report (PDF). Click here to read the press release for this analysis. SUMMARY The Civic Federation opposes the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) proposed budget of $9.5 billion for FY2023 because the District has not provided sufficient justification for raising its property tax to the maximum amount of 5% allowed under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL) by $140 million at a time when taxpayers already face serious economic strains and when CPS has…
On April 9, 2022 the Illinois General Assembly passed the three bills that comprise the FY2023 budget and FY2022 supplemental appropriations. On April 19 the Governor signed the bills into law. The FY2023 budget was passed nearly two months earlier than in previous years because the State’s primary election was moved to June from the usual March date and the General Assembly adjourned early to accommodate members’ campaign schedules. The FY2023 budget passed by the General Assembly is similar…
This blog post presents an overview of the Chicago Transit Authority’s FY2022 operating budget, including a summary of how federal stimulus funds were used to balance the budget, and an update on its recent $350 million debt issuance. The Chicago Transit Authority, like other transit agencies around the country, faces serious challenges to its future operations and fiscal solvency in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Federal funds have been critical in maintaining transit service in the…
