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Government Finance & Accountability

Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability

Ald. Rod Sawyer did legal work for firm that bought Beverly home for $32K from man with dementia

by Rachel Hinton and Sidnee King February 16, 2023March 15, 2023

A judge later invalidated the sale, but Sawyer, who is running for mayor, notes he was dismissed from the court case involving the purchase, with no finding of wrongdoing

Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability

A Revived Push for a Labor Peace Agreement With City Nonprofits

by Manny Ramos February 9, 2023February 8, 2023

Ald. Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez (33rd) told the Illinois Answers Project she was disheartened by nonprofit leaders who showed their opposition for an ordinance that would bar employers from interfering in union organizing efforts.

Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability

Chicago Boards the ‘Social Bonds’ Bandwagon — And Gets Results

by Alex Nitkin January 25, 2023January 25, 2023

The trendy debt maneuver has been tried in other major cities with some success

The two state officials who oversee Illinois’ YouthCare program – DCFS Director Marc Smith and HFS Director Theresa Eagleson – defended it and their oversight.
Posted inFollow-Up

Feds Probing Massive State Contract that Failed Foster Kids with Inadequate Health Care

by David Jackson and Rachel Hinton January 11, 2023January 18, 2023

An investigation by the Illinois Answers Project found that insurance giant Centene Corp. routinely fell short in providing basic care. Federal officials now want answers from the two state agencies overseeing the program.

Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability

Cook County TIF revenues smash records, squeeze taxpayers

by Alex Nitkin January 11, 2023January 11, 2023

Tax-increment financing districts raked in $1.6 billion in 2021, accounting for nearly 10 cents of every dollar in taxes paid by Cook County property owners last year.

Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough wants to end the work of a federal monitor appointed to root out patronage hiring in the office. (Credit: Clerk's Instagram page)
Posted inInvestigations

Cook County Office Looks to Shed Anti-Patronage Monitor as Watchdog Raises Alarm

by Alex Nitkin December 14, 2022January 3, 2023

Clerk Karen Yarbrough says her office has rooted out clout-based hiring. Attorney Michael Shakman isn’t so sure.

Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability

Towns, School Districts Getting Millions of More Dollars in Property Taxes Thanks to a New, Little-Known State Law

by Alex Nitkin December 7, 2022January 3, 2023

For the first time this year, taxing bodies will automatically charge property owners for governments’ taxation errors.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at a conference last month in Moscow. Credit: Getty Images
Posted inFollow-Up

Governor Will Sign into Law Measure to Prohibit State Investments in Russian Companies 

by Jared Rutecki December 2, 2022January 17, 2023

Following criticism by some Republicans for failing to pass a law in April, lawmakers approved a bipartisan measure that would order state pension funds to divest from Russian stocks and bonds.

Posted inInvestigations

Lightfoot administration pushing TIF renewals to funnel billions in tax dollars into hot neighborhoods

by Alex Nitkin November 30, 2022December 1, 2022

The mayor campaigned on reining in tax-increment financing and has in some instances but is continuing the controversial practice in some affluent areas that critics say don’t need them.

Olumide Olupitan reviews paperwork in his office related to the Washington Heights house he lost as part of the Cook County tax sale. (Victor Hilitski/For the BGA)
Posted inInvestigations

Tax sale process hits Black homeowners hardest

by Sidnee King November 17, 2022March 2, 2023

The property tax sale process that can result in people losing their homes robs those communities of generational wealth, critics say. And Cook County’s last-chance fund to help make some of those homeowners whole is years behind in paying claims.

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