(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Chicago’s top budget official says the city can recover from the estimated $2 billion in budget gaps for this year and next, but there’s no telling how much longer the pandemic will keep dragging finances down.
Chicago Budget Director Susie Park said that uncertainty is one of the biggest problems with COVID-19.
Officials don’t know whether the numbers of cases will go down or by how much. There’s no guarantee of federal aid to compensate for lost tax revenue.
But Park said the 2021 budget can be balanced without it. And even if all businesses are allowed to reopen, who knows how many will?
“Companies are still taking their time,” Park said
This also affects the types of revenues the city coffers take in.
Park concedes there will be some layoffs, and Chicagoans are being asked about possible service cuts or raising new revenue.
So, what could go right? Park says people could make COVID-19 go away quicker.