As noted in many media reports and in the Civic Federation’s analysis of the City of Chicago’s FY2014 budget, the City balanced its budget in part with a number of targeted revenue enhancements. One of these revenue enhancements was a…
At a recent committee hearing, Illinois lawmakers were provided with a mixed message regarding the economy and State budget for the coming fiscal year. Officials from the Illinois Department of Revenue explained that although the State…
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle recently announced plans to revisit redevelopment of the 100-year-old Cook County Hospital building, which closed when John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital opened as a replacement facility in 2002. The…
This segment covers a proposal that was announced by House Speaker Michael Madigan on January 30 to cut Illinois’ corporate income tax in half. The Civic Federation said the proposal lacks a clear plan to address the loss of $1.5 billion…
This brief provides a compilation of selected consumer taxes, including rates and descriptions, in place in the City of Chicago as of January 10, 2014. It includes such taxes as the sales tax, gas tax, amusement tax, lease tax, hotel tax,…
This article discusses the release of the Civic Federation’s annual report that compares effective property tax rates for residential, commercial and…
Despite savings from recently enacted pension reforms,…
Last month the Civic Federation released its annual estimate of the full value of real estate in Chicago and the Cook County suburbs.…
The following posts were among the most highly read on the Civic Federation blog in 2013 and represent some of the most closely followed local government issues this year:…
