Politics
Budget Deadlock Continues as Critics of Mayor’s Proposal Push Forward
Undeterred by implacable opposition from Mayor Brandon Johnson, supporters of a plan to bridge Chicago’s $1.19 billion budget gap without hiking taxes on large firms formally introduced their rival proposal to the Chicago City Council and vowed to push for a critical vote.
The City Council agreed to meet next week on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Dec. 23 in an attempt to hammer out a deal over the $16.6 billion spending plan for 2026.
Twenty-seven City Council members signaled their support for the alternate budget proposal, even as at least two alderpeople that signed on to the first version of the plan did not endorse the latest version, while others climbed on board. The original proposal was based on bad data and faulty assumptions that could “jeopardize the city’s financial position,” according to Chicago’s top financial officials.
Ald. Nicole Lee (11th Ward), who is the lead sponsor of the alternative budget plan, acknowledged to reporters there was more work to be done to win the support of enough alderpeople to pass the package, and withstand a mayoral veto.
With just 20 days left before the deadline to avoid an unprecedented shutdown of city government, both factions continued to accuse the other side of failing to work collaboratively to find a solution.
Johnson remained defiant, again threatening to veto any plan that asks working-class Chicagoans to pay more to balance the city’s badly out-of-whack budget.
“I don’t support a budget that places such an incredible burden on working people at a time in which President Trump has made life quite difficult for working people across his country,” Johnson said. “The city of Chicago should not be adding to that burden.”
Much of the debate over Johnson’s 2026 budget, which would impose $623 million in new taxes on the wealthiest Chicagoans and largest firms, has centered on his call to reimpose the so-called head tax to fund violence prevention and youth employment programs.
A revised proposal from Johnson to impose a $33 per employee tax on companies with 500 or more employees to generate $82 million failed to shift the debate, leaving the city headed for an unprecedented shutdown.
The alternative plan would eliminate that tax, and hike garbage fees for most Chicagoans to $15 per month.
While Chicago homeowners now pay $9.50 per month to have their trash and recyclables picked up once a week, it costs the city $37.50 per month to haul away each home’s garbage, according to a task force report.
In order to eliminate the head tax and pay $139.9 million more toward Chicago’s woefully underfunded pensions and eliminate the $166 million the city is set to borrow to pay firefighters, who worked without a contract for four years, the revised alternative plan raises a host of fines and fees and counts on new revenue from sources that the Johnson administration says will threaten the city’s financial stability.
The proposal counts on $48.4 million in revenue from yet-to-be installed slot machines at O’Hare and Midway airports, according to a proposal released Wednesday afternoon.
However, the city’s 2026 spending plan counts on just $31 million in revenue from the temporary casino, now open in River North, and the permanent casino, set to open next year, records show. State law allows as many as 4,000 gaming positions, including slots at O’Hare and Midway airports, in Chicago.
City officials have been counting on casino gaming to significantly ease the pressure on the city’s finances while creating thousands of jobs and drawing tourists — and their fat wallets.
In addition, the rival budget plan also urges the city to increase its estimates on tax revenue collection by $31.6 million, saying the mayor’s plan is too conservative. That could threaten the city’s financial stability, Johnson said.
The proposal also relies $26 million from an “augmented reality” advertising licensing program that would allow companies to impose videos and other content on city properties like Millennium Park or the Riverwalk that can be seen through a smartphone, virtual reality glasses or tablet, according to the proposal.
An additional $19 million would come from additional taxes on short-term rentals through home-sharing platforms like Airbnb, according to the proposal.
Officials cannot pass a short-term ordinance to keep City Hall functioning while negotiations continue, officials said. That means without a budget agreement, more than 30,000 workers will not be paid and city services will stop.
Johnson has promised to veto a budget that includes a reimposed grocery tax, hikes garbage fees or property taxes. In addition, Johnson has vowed to reject any spending plan that cuts the Chicago Police Department’s proposed $2.1 billion budget.
It would take 34 alderpeople to override that veto.
The last time the Chicago City Council attempted to override a mayoral veto of a budget was in 1984, in the midst of what has become known as Council Wars, when a block of White alderpeople — led by now-convicted former Alds. Ed Burke (14th Ward) and Ed Vrdolyak (10th Ward) — thwarted initiatives from former Mayor Harold Washington, the city’s first Black mayor, at every turn.
Led by Ald. Samantha Nugent (39th Ward), 19 members of the Budget Committee called on Ald. Jason Ervin (28th Ward), its chair, to schedule a budget committee meeting at 11:30 a.m. Dec. 16.
Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]
