Corporation Counsel Mary Richardson-Lowry is questioned by Ald. Brendan Reilly (42) during a budget hearing on Nov. 13, 2025. [Livestream]

Leaders from the Department of Law (DOL) told alderpeople during a budget hearing Thursday they would hire staff to bring in additional revenue, fight the Trump administration against frozen grant funds and continue to strategize to settle large swaths of police misconduct cases tied to problematic officers. 

The head of the department also reiterated confidence in defending the mayor’s proposed social media tax, which would be the first of its kind.

City Hall is pictured. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Chicago Department of Animal Care and Control (ACC) Acting Executive Director Susan Cappello testified before the City Council’s budget committee Thursday and revealed her office has seen a 30 percent surge in shelter intake, processing over 13,000 animals this year.  

Mayor Brandon Johnson presides over a City Council meeting on Dec. 16, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council on Friday will consider numerous proposals to allocate city financial assistance to housing and park district projects, the latest multimillion-dollar legal settlement related to a notorious ex-cop and a resolution to create a task force focused on gender-based violence. 

The council will meet at 10 a.m.

Ald. Raymond Lopez (15) questions City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin during a budget hearing on Nov. 12, 2025. [Livestream]

City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin announced Wednesday that she has directed her office to boycott the purchase of U.S. Treasury bonds in protest of what she called the “authoritarian regime” of President Donald Trump.

DHR Comm. Sandra Blakemore takes questions from Ald. Michelle Harris (8) during a budget hearing on Nov. 12, 2025. [Livestream]

Alderpeople on Wednesday asked the head of the Department of Human Resources (DHR) about shortening the time it takes to hire new employees during a budget hearing.

The human resources department oversees recruiting and onboarding new city employees, developing the city’s workforce and includes a board to hear claims of discrimination and other misconduct.

Ald. Bill Conway (34) questions interim COPA Chief Administrator LaKenya White during a budget hearing on Nov. 12, 2025. [Livestream]

The city’s police oversight bodies — the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA), Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA) and the Chicago Police Board — detailed their proposed 2026 budgets before the Committee on Budget and Government Operations Wednesday.

Ernst and Young Principal Adam Chepenik, left, presents during a budget committee hearing on Nov. 10, 2025. [Livestream]

Alderpeople on Monday grilled city budget leaders and a representative from consulting firm Ernst and Young during a Committee on Budget and Government Operations hearing on a report on potential cost-saving and revenue-generating solutions to Chicago’s structural budget gap.

Deputy Corporation Counsel Jessica Felker, left, speaks at a finance committee meeting on Nov. 10, 2025. [Livestream]

The City Council Committee on Finance on Monday advanced a multimillion-dollar legal settlement with a man who’s accused a disgraced former cop of framing him and multiple parks and housing projects proposed for city financial assistance.

Flags fly outside Chicago City Hall. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Committee on Finance on Monday will consider a massive legal settlement to resolve a case related to a disgraced former cop and multiple agreements to allocate financial assistance to housing and park projects. The committee will meet at 10:30 a.m. in council chambers.

Ald. Pat Dowell (3) asks OPSA Executive Director Era Patterson questions during a budget hearing on Nov. 6, 2025. [Livestream]

Office of Public Safety Administration (OPSA) Executive Director Era Patterson, who was confirmed in September, talked during a budget hearing last week about how rightsizing and efficiency efforts have reduced spending in an office frequently accused of bloat, with OPSA proposed for its lowest budget since 2021.

CFD Comm. Annette Nance-Holt takes questions from Ald. Raymond Lopez (15) during a budget hearing on Nov. 6, 2025. [Livestream]

Alderpeople asked the head of the Chicago Fire Department (CFD) about cost-saving suggestions from a city-commissioned budget study and about aldermanic notification during emergencies at a budget hearing Thursday.

CPD Supt. Larry Snelling fields questions from Ald. Matt O'Shea (19) during a budget hearing on Nov. 5, 2025. [Livestream]

Alderpeople asked leaders of the Chicago Police Department (CPD) about managing excessive personnel costs and replacement acoustic gunshot detection technology during a budget hearing Wednesday.

Department of Planning and Development Comm. Ciere Boatright is pictured during a press conference at City Hall on April 1, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Alderpeople asked the head of the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) about the mayor’s proposed massive sweep of tax increment financing (TIF) districts in his 2026 budget plan, as well as its efforts to reduce bureaucratic sluggishness and invest proceeds of the mayor’s billion-dollar bond deal during a budget hearing Tuesday.

Business Affairs and Consumer Protection Comm. Ivan Capifali answers questions from Ald. Brendan Reilly (42) on Nov. 4, 2025. [Livestream]

Regulating hemp-derived products was once again the main topic of discussion at a City Council budget hearing Tuesday, as alderpeople hurled questions and raised concerns about the city’s plan to license and tax hemp products with Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) leadership.

Housing Comm. Lissette Castañeda speaks at a budget hearing on Nov. 4, 2025. [Livestream]

The head of the Chicago Department of Housing (DOH) on Tuesday told members of the budget committee that the city had made excellent strides to maintain and increase the number of affordable housing units citywide.