While Mayor Brandon Johnson weighed what could be the biggest decision of his time as mayor, the Civic Federation said the proposed "budget does not move Chicago appreciably toward long-term fiscal stability."

Mayor Brandon Johnson called the plan speculative, infeasible and immoral, but has yet to announce whether he would veto the plan. It would take 34 votes to override that rejection.

Mayor Brandon Johnson immediately rejected the proposal to increase the city’s debt collection efforts as a tax “on everyday Chicagoans” that would target “poor and working” people.

There are just 15 days left before the deadline to avoid an unprecedented shutdown of Chicago city government.

In the latest case to be settled, the Chicago City Council agreed Wednesday to pay $15.4 million to Robert Smith Jr., who spent 33 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of the 1987 double murder of his wife’s mother and grandmother.

Over the objections of the mayor, the Chicago City Council agreed to meet Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Dec. 23 in an attempt to hammer out a deal over the $16.6 billion spending plan.

The measure is the third attempt by Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd Ward) to expand the Chicago Police Department’s power in an attempt to deter teens from gathering in large numbers.

The current proposal would impose a $33 per employee tax on companies with 500 or more employees to generate $82 million to fund violence prevention and youth employment programs.

A group of alderpeople led by 13th Ward Ald. Marty Quinn is pushing an ordinance to ban the sale of hemp-derived cannabinoid products in Chicago.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said he was open to new ideas and continuing negotiations but said he would not allow the city’s budget to be balanced “on the backs of working people.”

The latest back-and-forth between the mayor’s office and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s critics leaves no clear path to a deal with just 26 days left before the deadline to avoid an unprecedented shutdown of city government.

The License and Consumer Protection Committee voted 10-6 to send the measure to the full City Council, where it faces an uncertain fate and the opposition of Mayor Brandon Johnson.

Even as City Council members returned to City Hall on Tuesday after the Thanksgiving holiday, there is no clear path to a deal with just 28 days left before the deadline to avoid an unprecedented shutdown of city government.

Chicago Budget Director Annette Guzman joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss the budget negotiations.

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s proposal to impose $623 million in new taxes on the wealthiest Chicagoans and largest firms remains in purgatory, with no clear path to a deal with just 41 days left before the deadline to avoid a shutdown of city government.

Alds. Daniel La Spata (1st Ward), William Hall (6th Ward) and Bill Conway (34th Ward) joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss the ongoing budget negotiations. Here’s a snapshot of where they stand.