Chicago mayor to lobby state lawmakers to preserve $12M in potential lost revenue
CHICAGO - Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and several other suburban mayors will be lobbying state lawmakers this week in an effort to restore more funding to local governments.
What we know:
Johnson, along with mayors from Broadview, Fox Lake, Lynwood, Palos Hills, and other leaders representing local municipalities, will be at the state capitol in Springfield on Wednesday, according to the mayor’s office.
The local leaders argue that the loss of money shared with municipalities from the Local Government Distributive Fund (LGDF) would impact essential services they provide their residents. The fund represents a portion of the state’s income tax revenue distributed to local governments.
Mayors across the region said they oppose the proposed reduction of the revenues shared with local governments from 6.47% to 6.28%. That could result in the loss of about $60 million to local governments statewide, according to the mayors.
Chicago specifically would lose around $12.7 million in funding, Johnson’s office said.
"As the federal government continues to undermine our local bodies of government, it’s the mayors who are dealt with the heavy responsibility of responding to the needs of people, and look, that’s chump change, right?" Johnson said on Tuesday during a press conference. "When you’re talking about 1% increase would be $80 million that could go towards driving safe and more affordable communities."
Johnson added he's been "working to organize" local mayors over the past couple of years to advocate for more state funding. He said just a 1% increase in the fund would raise about $80 million for Chicago.
"Protecting LGDF revenues is one of the main items on our Legislative Agenda," said Palos Hills Mayor Gerald Bennett in a statement back in February. "While the Governor’s proposal indicates that the total dollar amount of LGDF distributions would remain essentially flat, similar adjustments in past years have created long-term challenges for municipalities across Illinois."
Until 2011, the rate of state income taxes dedicated to the LGDF was about 10%. Subsequent reductions in the rate have resulted in a loss of nearly $13 billion to local governments, according to the Illinois Municipal League.
What's next:
Johnson said he was headed to Springfield on Tuesday.
State lawmakers must approve a budget for fiscal year 2027 by the end of June.