CHICAGO CITY HALL (WBBM Newsradio) -- Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson insists his latest effort to get feedback on the budget is not an attempt to "call out" members of the City Council.
The mayor shared details about a new online portal his team has set up to solicit ideas from aldermen about how to change his administration's budget. It's basically a Google survey asking City Council members about programs that should be cut or other ways to raise money.
"This is about engagement," Mayor Johnson told reporters at City Hall Thursday afternoon. "There's been a lot of noise around possible efficiencies, so we want to make sure that we are giving aldermen every opportunity to put forth concrete ideas."
The mayor insisted he's seen no complete proposals from City Council members about potential alternatives to his $100 million "head tax" targeting Chicago's biggest employers, which members of the Finance Committee voted down on Monday.
Lincoln Square aldermen Andre Vasquez says he appreciates the gesture ... calling it "better late than never."
"It feels like these steps don't happen until City Council expresses that they're opposed to something," said Ald. Vasquez (40th Ward).
The city has about 40 days to put a budget in place ... counting holidays.