CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The battle at Chicago City Hall over Mayor Brandon Johnson's revised property tax increase proposal is heating up, and for the first time in decades, opponents of the plan are hinting they might be willing to let Chicago's city government shut down over the issue.
On Monday, 14 alderpersons shared a letter they sent to the mayor, in which they cite a survey that they claim says that 78%of Chicagoans would vote out city council members who approve a property tax increase before trimming down the budget.
Alders said the survey, which they commissioned, also found that two-thirds of Chicagoans would blame the mayor if the local government were to shut down over a budget impasse. Longtime political reporter Mike Flannery told WBBM a shutdown was “a real possibility.”
“The mayor says he's not gonna do layoffs,” Flannery said. “He's not inclined to the right-sizing that so many taxpayers, and some members, of the council want, and the council's not going to go along with some of the tax proposals that he's proposing without that.”
North Side Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) was among the alders who signed the letter. He said they hoped the letter would help Johnson better understand “what we’ve been saying for several months.”
“What we've been trying to say is you have to budget within your means, just like every resident does or every business does, and a lot of people just don't seem to get that,” he said. “Spending outside of your means is not feasible in municipal budgeting, and this is what we're trying to get across to the mayor and to the other aldermen.”
Waguespack added: “People want to see actual collaboration, and they don't want to see additional taxes and fees till we actually see a right-sized budget.”
With layoffs or a property tax increase appearing to be non-starters, Flannery said it may take Johnson and city council until Christmas-time to solve the 2025 budget.
The deadline for Chicago to approve its 2025 budget is Dec. 31.
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