Chicago News
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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. -
OCT 28, 2020
The Chicago Fire Department is projected to see a $60 million increase to its budget under the mayor’s proposal.
Budget hearings are scheduled to continue on Wednesday as aldermen dig into the $985 million combined budgets of the Chicago Fire Department, Chicago Public Library system, Commission on Human Relations and the Office of Emergency Management & Communications. -
OCT 28, 2020
Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin speaks to aldermen during a budget hearing on Tuesday
Pressed by aldermen Tuesday on how to leverage the city’s $8.5 billion in investment assets to battle systemic racism in the banking industry, Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin turned the tables back on the City Council, urging them to widen the landscape of lending institutions where the city can park its funds. -
OCT 28, 2020
Chicago City Clerk Anna Valencia on Tuesday answered questions on the department’s 2021 budget during a hearing overseen by Ald. Pat Dowell.
Aldermen on Tuesday raised concerns about vacancies in the Office of the City Clerk as the department going into 2021 will begin modernizing the City Council management system and continue its issuance of city stickers, residential parking permits and CityKeys to residents in need. -
OCT 28, 2020
UNLOCKED
Patrons purchase beverages from Old Crow Smokehouse's curbside bar on Clark Street in the Wrigleyville neighborhood on June 27, 2020 during the first weekend of Illinois in Phase Four of reopening amid the Coronavirus pandemic. | Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago
The state's new rules for Chicago include stopping indoor drinking and dining, limiting gathering sizes and putting a curfew on bars and restaurants.
CHICAGO — Bars and restaurants must stop indoor service starting Friday morning, and Chicago is facing other restrictions under new orders from Gov. JB Pritzker.
Chicago is joining six other regions of Illinois under what Pritzker has dubbed “enhanced mitigations.” The mitigations include stopping indoor drinking and dining and imposing an 11 p.m. curfew on bars and restaurants. -
OCT 27, 2020
Hearings on Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s proposed 2021 budget resume at 9 a.m. Tuesday. Aldermen will hear from the Office of the City Clerk, Office of the City Treasurer, Board of Election Commissioners and License Appeal Commission.
A Chicago elections worker sorts mail-in ballots. [Facebook/Chicago Board of Election Commissioners] -
OCT 27, 2020
Chief Financial Officer Jennie Huang Bennett and Budget Director Susie Park respond to questions from aldermen on the 2021 budget proposal on Monday.
Aldermen on Monday took quick aim at Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s proposed $94 million property tax hike and potential city layoffs to help close the 2021 budget gap, urging city officials to look elsewhere for new revenue and savings.
