The Civic Federation supported increased public funding for the CTA, Metra, and Pace, but opposed the massive service cuts proposed in the CTA's "Gridlock" Budget scenario. The Federation called for fare increases and other measures in lieu of service cuts, and recommended that a chair be appointed to the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) Board as soon as possible.
This table provides an estimate of the total market value of property in Cook County and shows how property value is spread among the City of Chicago, the northern and the southern suburbs. In tax year 2003, the City of Chicago full value surpassed that of Suburban Cook County for the first time since at least 1995.
This report analyzes the potential financial impact if Illinois were to come into compliance with the Streamlined Sales Tax Agreement. It projects both potential revenue increases from taxing internet and other remote sales as well as the cost of changing Illinois sales tax (Retailers' Occupation Tax and Use Tax) laws.
The Civic Federation opposed the City Colleges proposed FY2005 budget because it significantly increased both spending and revenues with little effort to control costs. The budget increased spending by 9% over FY2004, raised tuition by $10 per credit hour, and raised property tax to the maximum amount allowable.
The Civic Federation was concerned about the lack of transparency of this proposal. It questioned the rationale for approving $100 million in proposed projects without producing a Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) and before presenting the District's operating budget.
The Civic Federation was pleased with some elements of the $5.05 billion CPS budget, but also identified several areas of concern and opposed the $50 million maximum allowable increase in the property tax levy.
The Civic Federation supported granting the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) the authority to manage stormwater in Cook County, but opposed exempting the proposed stormwater management property tax levy from the property tax Extension Limit Law (PTELL, or "tax caps").
The Civic Federation supported the rejection of any broad-based tax increases but opposed the proposal to reduce pension funding by $310 million and extend payment of that amount over a 41-year period.
The Civic Federation supported the Governor's rejection of any broad-based tax increases but opposed the proposal to reduce pension funding by $527 million to balance the budget. It urged the General Assembly to hold public hearings to assess the impact of significant proposed changes to the State's corporate tax structure.
The Civic Federation supported the Governor's rejection of any broad-based tax increases but opposed the proposal to reduce pension funding by $527 million to balance the budget. It urged the General Assembly to hold public hearings to assess the impact of significant proposed changes to the State's corporate tax structure.
