Cook County is budgeting 23,467 full-time positions for 2022, more than any other year since 2015.

Backed by $1 billion in federal support, Cook County is set to explode spending and hiring to new heights under the 2022 budget proposal unveiled on Thursday by county board President Toni Preckwinkle. The plan calls to add nearly 1,600 new employee positions, including an army of new public health workers, bringing the county’s headcount to its highest level since 2015.