Government Budgets

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Borrowing can't stanch unpaid bills

This editorial about the State of Illinois' plan to borrow to pay down its past-due bills cites the Civic Federation, which says the plan is financially reckless.

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State Completes Pension Bonds Sale

For the second year in a row, the State of Illinois raised funds in the municipal bond market to make its annual pension contributions. On February 23, 2011, the State finalized the sale of $3.7 billion worth of Pension Obligation Bonds (…

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Cook County Board Approves FY2011 Budget

On Saturday February 26th, the Cook County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the FY2011 Annual Appropriations Ordinance. In the…

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Cook County Board votes to roll back sales-tax increase by 2013

This article discusses the Cook County Board of Commissioners vote to rollback the remaining portion of the 2008 penny sales tax increase by 2013. The Civic Federation says that the tax increase was established without a solid plan for how…

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Rahm Emanuel will Bürgermeister von Chicago warden

In this segment on Swiss Public Radio (in German) about Rahm Emanuel’s mayoral campaign, Civic Federation President Laurence Msall talks about the financial challenges the next mayor of Chicago must face.

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Afternoon Mayoral Election Roundup

This article discusses the City of Chicago mayoral election. It mentions that the Civic Federation’s “Financial…

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Emanuel confronts deficit in Chicago

This article about the City of Chicago mayoral race and the challenges the next mayor will face cites a Civic Federation report that found that Chicago area governments’ unfunded pension liabilities total about $23 billion.

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Illinois Bond Sale Gets Done at a Cost

In this article about the market for Illinois bonds, the Civic Federation says that the State’s plan to borrow money to pay into its pension system is too expensive and that the State should consider cutting its costs if it cannot pay its…

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Next Mayor Inherits Budget Hole: Msall

Civic Federation President Laurence Msall talks about the issues facing the next mayor of the City of Chicago in this news segment.

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Chicago mayor race: Softer Rahm Emanuel bids for hard task

This segment discusses Rahm Emanuel’s mayoral campaign. It cites the warning in the Civic Federation’s “