WBBM NEWSRADIO — The Evanston City Council will vote Monday night on a resolution that would increase its reparations budget from $400,000 to $3.45 million.
The budget increase would cover the cost of the remaining 138 reparations recipients who qualified to receive $25,000 from the city. Recipients may use the $25,000 for assistance in buying a home, improving their home, or mortgage payments.
Money for the Evanston Reparations Fund comes from the city’s municipal tax on marijuana sales — 3% of the city’s gross cannabis sales. That presents a challenge to funding the expanded budget, though, as Evanston has only one marijuana dispensary.
In a memo outlining the proposal, city officials wrote that they expect marijuana tax revenue to decline. Due to that, they wrote, the city only anticipates having money to support payments to another five to 16 recipients over the coming months.
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In prior months, city officials have tried looking elsewhere for funding to its reparations program. In June, more than a dozen of Evanston’s religious organizations rallied and committed to raising money for the effort.
At the rally, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss said cannabis taxes weren’t generating as much revenue as expected. Biss added that there was room for the community to step up and take part in supporting reparations.
The proposal on the table for Monday’s vote says Evanston’s Reparations Committee is “exploring alternative sources of revenue to fund the remaining recipients of the Restorative Housing Reparations Program.”
In the meantime, officials wrote that reparations recipients will be paid out as funds become available.
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