Civic Federation Blog Archive: February 2012

02.29.12

Operating Deficit Ratio in Large Cities

This blog continues the Civic Federation’s examination of indicators that can be used to assess the financial health of local governments. The Federation is working on a project that compares the City of Chicago with a group of thirteen large U.S. cities that have also been the subject of...

02.22.12

Chicago Park District Approves Tax Subsidy to Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture

On February 8, 2012, the Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners unanimously voted to provide the Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture (IPRAC) $243,407 in funds from the District’s personal property tax replacement (PPRT) receipts. The PPRT is a corporate income tax that is...

02.14.12

No Quorum for Cook County Public Hearing

On February 14, 2012, the Civic Federation blogged about its support for a proposed resolution that would put the abolishment of the Office of the Cook County Recorder of Deeds and the transfer of its operations to the County Clerk to a countywide referendum. The public hearing to consider the...

02.14.12

Proposed Referendum to Merge County Clerk and Recorder

(See addendum: "No Quorum for Cook County Public Hearing")

02.09.12

Municipal Bankruptcy

Municipalities and other local governments in the United States continue to struggle financially in the aftermath of the Great Recession. While recession has technically ended, revenues for many governments have not returned to pre-recession levels and expenditures and liabilities continue to grow...

02.02.12

Civic Federation and Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago to Co-Host March 14 Conference on Public-Private Partnerships

State and local governments across the nation increasingly are using alternative service delivery efforts, known as public-private partnerships (P3s) to provide a wide variety of services, from printing to janitorial services to major infrastructure projects. The reasons for moving to a P3...