Chicago to refinance, but long-term issues remain
[August 26, 2026]
By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Mayor Brandon Johnson says his administration has
identified a way to reduce its budget shortfall for the current fiscal
year.
The mayor said the city would refinance eligible bonds at their 10-year
option point to save up to $71 million without increasing debt costs.
The other part of the plan, if necessary, would use the city’s remaining
American Rescue Plan Act funds.
Johnson called it “responsible financial management,” but not a
long-term solution.
“We cannot continue to govern by searching for loose change in the couch
or, every time there’s a budget challenge, we revert back to
proclivities that have caused tremendous harm to working people in this
city,” the mayor said.
Last month, the mayor’s budget office projected a $130 million budget
gap for the current fiscal year, but Johnson said on Tuesday the deficit
was $85.1 million.
Johnson blamed the budget gap on what he called the city council’s
“corporate caucus,” or aldermen who refused to go along with the mayor’s
plan last year to impose a $33 per-worker monthly tax on businesses with
more than 500 employees.
Johnson said the council’s provision to sell city debt to collectors
failed to generate any revenue. Aldermen, in turn, said Johnson’s
administration failed to collect revenue it opposes.
Reason Foundation Research Director Geoff Lawrence co-authored a
recently-released report that signaled red flags based on financial
health metrics.
“Chicago exceeds the thresholds on seven of those eight measures and
almost all eight of them,” Lawrence told The Center Square.
The report called Chicago “the most financially tenuous place in
America” and noted that Detroit’s bankruptcy filing in 2013 should serve
as a cautionary tale for Illinois’ largest city.
Lawrence said, not including Chicago Public Schools debt, Chicago’s debt
is about 5.13 times its annual revenue.
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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks at the Illinois State Capitol
on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. Photo: Greg Bishop / The Center Square
“That's going to continue to deteriorate for some time because city
revenues aren't growing nearly as fast as the debt,” Lawrence told
The Center Square.
CPS owes $30.13 billion in debt, or nearly triple the district’s
assets.
The Reason Foundation report said CPS liabilities amount to $93,669
per student, second only to Davidson County Schools in Tennessee.
Johnson spoke at George Leland Elementary School on the West Side
Monday morning and called for a statewide tax on millionaires.
“And so what I’m counting on George Leland and the parents here,
let’s continue to organize together to make sure our schools are
fully funded. Are y’all ready to ring that bell?” Johnson said.
The mayor’s appearance at Leland was the first of eight scheduled
with CPS Superintendent/CEO Macquline King at the city’s public
schools this week.
Last month, the Chicago Board of Education “eliminated” a projected
$732.5 million deficit by passing a $9.96 billion CPS budget that
includes $435 million in unallocated funds from the city and state.
According to the Illinois State Board of Education’s Illinois Report
Card, CPS spent about $20,000 per student in fiscal year 2025. |
