CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Mayor Lori Lightfoot has pushed back the day she delivers her 2021 budget to the City Council.
Mayor Lightfoot’s Budget Address had been scheduled for next Wednesday, Oct. 14. That date’s been pushed back a week to Oct. 21.
The Mayor has been hoping for more federal help in closing an expected $1.2-billion budget shortfall - almost two-thirds of it because of revenue losses due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In a statement on Monday, the Mayor said difficult decisions are under consideration, and the city must confront the potential absence of that federal money.
“This year we have come face to face with not only the devastating health consequences of this pandemic, but the economic destruction left in its wake, all while having to navigate the uncertainty around how long this will continue,” said Mayor Lightfoot, in a statement. “We must make the difficult decisions under the conditions we are currently in, and this means confronting a potential absence of additional federal funding.”
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasurer Secretary Steve Mnuchin are still negotiating.
Previously, Mayor Lightfoot has said everything is on the table as this budget is prepared - meaning the possibility of layoffs or a property tax increase, though she said those would be last on the list.
Up to now, the city has not had to lay off workers beyond normal attrition. And the Mayor’s been able to hold the line on property taxes. But, the Mayor has said more than once, everything must be on the table -- and it is.