This week the Civic Federation released its annual Status of Local Pension Funding report. This report reviews fiscal year 2010 actuarial valuation reports and financial statements of the retirement funds.[1] The purpose of this report is to compile and analyze basic financial data on ten major local government employee pension funds in the Chicago area.[2] It is intended to provide policymakers…
This blog continues the Civic Federation’s examination of indicators that can be used to assess the financial health of local governments. The Federation is working on a project comparing the City of Chicago with a group of thirteen large U.S. cities that have also been the subject of analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Philadelphia Research Initiative. Previous entries examined the City of…
On Tuesday, May 8, 2012, Mayor Rahm Emanuel offered a plan to reform pensions for employees of the City of Chicago, Chicago Public Schools and Chicago Park District during a hearing of the Illinois House of Representatives Personnel and Pensions Committee. The Civic Federation is encouraged by Mayor Emanuel’s pension reform initiative and looks forward to receiving more details on how each of the…
On December 12, 2011, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced the College to Careers initiative for the City Colleges of Chicago. The new initiative addresses the need to fill an estimated approximately 100,000 jobs that are expected to be available in Chicago between now and 2020.[1] College to Careers focuses on two job fields expected to grow significantly in the next ten years: 1) healthcare and 2)…
On April 24, 2012, the City Council passed an ordinance establishing an Infrastructure Trust for the City of Chicago. Introduced by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the Trust is an alternative source of funding that will be used to attract private sector funds to rebuild the City’s aging infrastructure. At a time when capital funding from the federal government and State of Illinois is scarce and the City’s…
Last week, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announced two alternative service delivery initiatives: 1) managed competition for County custodial services; and 2) third-party administration of the County’s employee absence and leave management.[1] In its 2010 Cook County Modernization Report, the Civic Federation recommended that Cook County institute alternative service delivery, also…
This blog continues the Civic Federation’s examination of indicators that can be used to assess the financial health of local governments. The Federation is working on a project that compares the City of Chicago with a group of thirteen large U.S. cities that have also been the subject of analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Philadelphia Research Initiative. Previous entries examined the City…
On Wednesday, March 14, the Civic Federation co-hosted a conference on public-private partnerships (also known as “P3s”) with the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. Nearly 150 business, civic and government leaders convened to hear experts discuss their view of the future of government cooperation with the private sector to deliver government services and to develop major infrastructure projects.…
This blog continues the Civic Federation’s examination of indicators that can be used to assess the financial health of local governments. The Federation is working on a project that compares the City of Chicago with a group of thirteen large U.S. cities that have also been the subject of analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Philadelphia Research Initiative. Previous entries examined the City…
This brief provides an updated compilation of selected consumer taxes, including rates and descriptions, in effect in the City of Chicago on February 2, 2012. It includes such taxes as the sales tax, gas tax, amusement tax, lease tax, hotel tax, liquor tax, restaurant tax, soft drink tax, wheel tax and parking tax.
