July 08, 2013
The Civic Federation supports the City Colleges tentative FY2014 budget totaling $657.0 million for continuing the District’s exemplary work to improve its financial and operational health. The FY2014 proposed budget holds the property tax levy flat for the fourth consecutive year and reduces the unrestricted operating portion of the budget, the portion over which the District has the most control, by 6.9% or $21.1 million. Now in the middle stages of its multi-year Reinvention reorganization effort to improve student outcomes and financial health, the District has redirected $51 million in administrative costs toward the classroom.
The Civic Federation commends City Colleges for prudently addressing uncertainties related to the State of Illinois’ financial distress. The District’s expenditure forecasts incorporate a proposed phased-in shift of the normal cost of employee pension benefits from the State of Illinois to City Colleges, legislation that was approved by the Illinois House of Representatives but was not agreed to by the Senate before the spring legislative session ended in May 2013. If the bill were to go into effect, the District estimates that its annual employer pension contribution would be approximately $1.0 million.
The City Colleges fiscal year begins July 1, 2013 and ends June 30, 2014.
Click here to read the press release for this analysis.