LIVE | Mayor Brandon Johnson presents FY27 Chicago budget
CHICAGO – Mayor Brandon Johnson is expected to present his plan Wednesday for addressing Chicago’s $882 million budget deficit, setting the stage for a contentious debate at City Hall.
Chicago budget deficit plan
The Chicago City Council is scheduled to hold a special meeting at 10 a.m. to discuss the city’s financial challenges and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s budget proposal, which he is calling the “Chicago’s Fair Share Budget.”
The mayor’s office recently released results from a budget engagement survey involving nearly 600 residents. The report found that 88% of participants supported taxes on large corporations to help close the deficit.
A corporate head tax proposal, which is a monthly per-employee tax on large corporations, was rejected last year by alders during that budget cycle. A group of alders opposed to Johnson’s head tax proposal created their own spending plan, which raised a series of other taxes, while the mayor neither signed nor vetoed that budget.
The other side:
A group of 29 alders is calling for government “efficiencies,” political speak for spending cuts, before the city considers property tax increases or a corporate head tax.
The group has criticized tax increases but has not presented specific alternatives, according to the mayor’s office. The administration is calling on the alders to bring concrete solutions to the budget debate.
Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th Ward) criticized the proposed corporate tax, saying it could hurt Chicago’s economy.
“All the mayor’s done here is repackaged it, rename it,” O’Shea said. “This is a head tax, this is a tax on jobs, this is a tax on economic growth.”
O’Shea said businesses could leave Chicago for nearby suburbs if the tax moves forward.
What’s next:
The budget debate is expected to continue through a December deadline.
Wednesday’s special meeting marks the beginning of what is expected to be a difficult negotiation over taxes, spending and how the city will address its budget gap.
The Source: The information in this story came from Mayor Brandon Johnson and Chicago City Council members.
