Finally, a Budget

Fees and fines through the wazoo....but spared a property tax hike for the moment:

• Mayor Brandon Johnson’s $17.3 billion budget — minus a $68.5 million property tax increase — was finally approved by the City Council on Monday, but the political rifts it caused will linger, endangering Johnson’s future agenda.

  The co-chairs of a 19-member Progressive Caucus that usually is the bedrock of Johnson’s support delivered that message loud and clear prior to the 27-23 vote on a budget that holds the line on property taxes, but includes $165.5 million in other taxes, fines and fees.

Some of the increases:

• The mayor’s revised budget also will hit Chicagoans’ wallets in other ways, such as adding an amusement tax on streaming services; higher taxes on cloud computing, business software and equipment leases; and higher taxes on parking and downtown congestion.

  The city also hopes to generate $11.4 million from “automated speed limit enforcement,” presumably by adding more speed cameras in wards where alderpersons allow it, and $4.6 million by raising an array of license fees, transfer fees and fines, as well as the cost of residential parking permits.

  Another late change to the 2025 budget: $10 million in “cost recovery” by charging organizers of ticketed events for police and traffic services and by better scheduling those events to reduce overtime costs.

And once again, the CPS property tax assessment is going to be maxed out again, despite enrollment declining again.