Mayor Brandon Johnson holds a news conference at City Hall on Dec. 8, 2025. [Livestream]

Following a meeting this past weekend between alderpeople pushing a number of alternative strategies to balance the city’s 2026 budget and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s finance leadership, the mayor said Monday morning he had sent a letter to the full City Council to update them on budget negotiations and discussed his desire to avoid a government shutdown by failing to pass a budget by the end of the year.