Rahm's Budget is OK!

Everything is hunky dory - especially if you can use imaginary money!

• Mayor Rahm Emanuel plans to offer a good-news budget to City Council on Wednesday that would siphon money from special taxing districts and rely on predictions of an improving economy to balance the books, aldermen said.
  
  But while Emanuel has already said he will not raise taxes, fees or fines, the details of how he will do more with less pain were lacking in the PowerPoint presentation Budget Director Alexandra Holt made to aldermen Tuesday.

Here's where the funny-money comes in:

• This time around, Emanuel has indicated he will rely more heavily on rosier revenue projections tied to a better economy. The administration is predicting $45 million in revenue growth from its share of the state income tax and collections of real estate transfer, retail sales and hotel taxes. It is also counting on $69.2 million in higher debt collections this year, along with a projected $24 million increase next year, to close a budget hole most recently estimated at $298 million.
  
  Aldermen were shown plans to siphon off $10 million for the city from tax increment finance districts, or TIFs — in which property taxes paid to local governments are frozen for up to 23 years, with any extra collections being used at the city's discretion as a way to spur development and create jobs.
  
  To do that, the mayor plans to declare $25 million in 22 TIF funds as surplus. Of that, $5 million would go to the city, with the rest going to other taxing agencies, primarily Chicago Public Schools. He would get another $5 million from TIF accounts that have expired or that he plans to close.
  

There's a whole lot of "projections," "predicting" and "counting on" in that budget.