Chicago News
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Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is battling for a second term against Republican challenger Pat O’Brien
While most of the state’s attention Tuesday night will be wrapped in the presidential race and the fate of Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed constitutional amendment, the bitter contest between Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and Republican Pat O’Brien tops a handful of critical county-level races also on tap for Election Day. -
NOV 03, 2020
Cook County Chief Financial Officer Ammar Rizki presents the proposed $6.9 billion county budget for 2021.
The Cook County Board of Commissioners spent just over an hour on Monday quizzing top financial officials in board President Toni Preckwinkle’s office, mostly praising their plan to close a projected $410 million budget shortfall without tax increases or widespread layoffs. -
NOV 02, 2020
Aldermen on Monday will hear from the Department of Water Management, Office of Inspector General, Department of Human Resources
City Council hearings on the proposed 2021 budget resume Monday morning as aldermen are scheduled to hear from the Office of Inspector General, Department of Human Resources and Department of Water Management. -
At more than $1.3 billion, the projected costs of operating O’Hare and Midway airports represent one of the largest budgets of any city department. But the Chicago Department of Aviation’s budget barely surfaced as a source of discussion on Friday, as aldermen spent most of a nearly two-hour hearing asking department Comm. Jamie Rhee about pandemic safety, upcoming capital projects and the department’s approach to diversity in hiring.
O’Hare Airport [photo by cseeman on Flickr] -
Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi will face questions Monday about his office’s $31 million proposed budget.
The Cook County Board of Commissioners is poised on Monday to kick off a full week of hearings on board president Toni Preckwinkle’s $6.9 billion proposal to keep the county funded through 2021, starting with the county’s tax collection offices and the administrative departments under Preckwinkle’s command. -
NOV 02, 2020
Chicago Department of Transportation Commissioner Gia Biagi on Friday fielded aldermen’s questions on the department’s $772 million budget proposed for 2021.
Streetlight repairs, pedestrian safety, bike lanes and speed cameras were hot topics among aldermen during a City Council budget hearing Friday. -
NOV 02, 2020
UNLOCKEDWith more than 3 million ballots already cast statewide, Illinois Democrats see this year’s election as an opportunity to seize on President Donald Trump’s unpopularity and bolster their already sizable advantage in the state legislature. Meanwhile, Republicans are hoping make gains by highlighting a recent string of federal indictments that have resulted in several Democratic lawmakers being charged and implicated House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago).
During the 2018 election cycle, Democrats grew their majority in the legislature by seven seats in the House and three seats in the Senate. Today, Democrats control 74 of the 118 seats in the House and 40 of the 59 seats in the Senate, enough for a supermajority in both chambers. -
OCT 30, 2020
Chicago Police Supt. David Brown speaking at an event in Woodlawn during the summer of 2020.
As some aldermen on Thursday sustained their calls for new alternatives to policing and for money to be diverted from the Chicago Police Department, others contrasted that demand and made a call for more officers on the street. -
The City Council will wrap its first week of budget hearings on Friday by picking through the more than $1.9 billion combined budgets of the Chicago Department of Transportation, Board of Ethics and Department of Aviation.
Chicago Department of Transportation Comm. Gia Biagi speaks at a South Side Divvy bike event in July [Facebook/Chicago Department of Transportation] -
OCT 30, 2020
Of all of the merits to the Fair Tax - structural equality, better responsiveness to the economic realities of our state, and support for our residents most in need of assistance- the most important is that it will allow the State of Illinois to fulfill its constitutional obligation to adequately fund education for all students in every district. In 2017, the State implemented a historic and long-overdue school funding reform law called Evidence Based Funding (EBF). This new funding formula will ensure that every student in Illinois receives a baseline level of support, regardless of where they live and what property taxes are like in their community. However the formula will not work if it is not funded and that’s what the Fair Tax represents- 21st century support for 21st century schools.
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OCT 29, 2020
The Chicago Police Department could see a 3.3 percent reduction in funding compared to 2020, far short of satisfying calls to “defund the police.”
Aldermen are expected to spend the day Thursday scrutinizing the Chicago Police Department in a hearing on the department’s proposed 2021 budget. -
OCT 29, 2020
Acting Commissioner of Chicago Public Library Mary Ellen Messner on Wednesday discussed the library’s $112 million proposed budget for 2021.
At a time when other city departments are likely facing drops in funding going into 2021, Chicago Public Library could see a hike in its funding, largely due to an increase in state grant funding. -
OCT 29, 2020
Chicago Fire Department Commissioner Richard Ford speaks during a budget hearing on Wednesday
The Chicago Fire Department is expected to see a wave of retirements by the end of this year, and a seven-year lag between recruitment exams is making it harder for the department to replenish its ranks with diverse recruits, officials told aldermen Wednesday.
