The $20 million includes $5 million awarded through the county’s community violence intervention grant initiative and a new $15 million funding opportunity that will launch later this year, according to Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.

The projected budget gap facing the county next year is fueled by the impact of litigation related to Safe Roads Amendment, growing payroll and pension liabilities, increasing employee benefit costs and Medicaid enrollment declines due to federal policy changes, according to a budget forecast presentation.

Second installment property tax bills are typically released in early July and due in early August, but those bills have been repeatedly delayed by an overhaul of the county’s property tax system plagued with problems.

Incumbent Toni Preckwinkle has spent the past 16 years as board president. Running against her was Chicago Ald. Brendan Reilly, who has represented the city’s 42nd Ward since 2007.

The cuts, imposed by the Trump administration, will hit the county’s bottom line next year, threatening the ability of more than 400,000 Cook County residents to get necessary health care.

Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke has implemented a new protocol that calls for the use of all available prosecutorial tools to support investigations into the use of force by federal immigration officers.

First installment property tax bills are typically released in February and due in early March, but will be delayed by one month by an overhaul of the county’s property tax system plagued with problems.

The debate over how to respond to President Donald Trump’s aggressive efforts to carry out the largest mass deportation effort in U.S. history is the newest flashpoint in the race for Cook County Board president.

Preckwinkle urged Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke to act “swiftly, proactively and transparently” in order to ensure accountability after agents have repeatedly used “excessive force."

Chicagoans “suffered tremendously” during those storms and should be able to rely on the federal government for help, Mayor Brandon Johnson said Tuesday.

The enhanced tax credits that have helped reduce the cost of health insurance for the vast majority of Affordable Care Act enrollees expired at the end of 2025. More than 500,000 Illinoisans depended on these credits to make health coverage affordable, according to U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi.

Just 43 days after Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle introduced the spending plan that closed a $102.6 million gap in its general fund and a $108.8 million gap in its health fund, it sailed to final approval with little drama.

Second installment property tax bills are typically released in early July and due in early August, but have been delayed for nearly four months by an overhaul of the county’s property tax system plagued with problems.

Cook County is putting forth a $10.1 billion budget proposal for the 2026 fiscal year. The plan includes no new taxes or fees, but officials warn of tough waters in the years ahead as potential federal funding cuts threaten to hit the county’s bottom line.

“We’re headed into pretty tough waters here, turmoil,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said. “And I would anticipate … next year, and particularly the years after next, we’re going to be in a very difficult place as the federal government reduces its support.”

Ground was ceremonially broken Tuesday on the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park, a development officials say will bring an economic boom to South Chicago. Neighbors would like to get those benefits in writing.