Chicago aldermen fight Johnson’s $17.6B budget
(The Center Square) – Chicago City Council members are grilling department heads over Mayor Brandon Johnson’s proposed $17.6 billion budget for 2027, setting up what could be a contentious road to the Dec. 31 deadline.
Johnson’s plan sits about $900 million above the 2026 budget and aims to bridge an $882 million shortfall through polarizing tax hikes.
At a recent town hall, Johnson insisted he remains open to compromise.
“I want to hear the critiques that you all have. I’m not above reproach. I believe that I can even disagree and still find an agreeable path forward. But we have to get active, Chicago. So, this is not going to come down to a single politician,” Johnson said.
To close the deficit, Johnson revived a corporate “head tax” on large employers – a measure more than half the aldermen said was a non-starter to engage with the mayor’s proposal this year.
The tax was rejected last year and aldermen drafted an independent budget in place of the mayor’s.
Johnson’s proposal also raises taxes on sports betting, personal property leases, and delivery packages, while targeting companies with more than 125 workers.
More state assistance remains unlikely, as Gov. J.B. Pritzker shot down the idea of extra funding for the city and Chicago Public Schools – which passed its budget assuming state lawmakers would cover its deficit before year’s end – last week.
“Chicago has about 20% of the population of the state. So there’s 80% everywhere else. And I want to make sure that we’re serving everybody. I love the city. I am from this city, I live in this city, but I also am the governor of the entire state. So, everybody deserves to have a more affordable state,” Pritzker said last week.
Council members are also challenging Johnson’s plan for a $75 million payout from Stonepeak Partners, the firm that bought control of the city’s parking meters.
Aldermen Nicole Lee, Pat Dowell, and Scott Waguespack filed an ordinance Tuesday to direct the funds to underfunded pensions this year, overriding Johnson’s plan to use it in the 2027 budget.
Johnson said the move was the council’s decision.
“If the City Council decides to use their authority to put an additional $75 million on top of the supplemental payment, of course, again, that is their prerogative,” Johnson said. “In terms of what they will do to find another $75 million, look, we’re talking to alders every single day. What we saw last year was obviously incomplete.”
Budget hearings continue Wednesday with economic development agencies, followed by public safety departments Thursday.
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