JULY NEWS & UPDATES

2023

Financial Challenges Facing the Chicago Mayor and City Council: Options and Recommendations

In 2023 Chicago voters elected Brandon Johnson as the City’s new Mayor as well as a City Council with 13 new members. In this report, the Federation details the five major fiscal challenges the City's new political leadership immediately faces:

Recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the end of federal recovery funds;
Chicago’s public safety crisis;
The City’s chronically high liability burden;
Funding the City’s enormous pension shortfall; and
The City’s persistent structural deficit.

Read the Report

Chicago Public Schools FY2024 Proposed Budget: Analysis and Recommendations

The Civic Federation continues to have significant reservations about the long-term viability of the District's finances. The CPS budget of $9.8 billion for the coming year is stable due to a combination of federal COVID-19 relief funds and local tax sources, including a property tax increase to the maximum allowed under the state tax cap law. However, CPS faces a fiscal cliff of $628 million beginning in FY2026 after federal relief funds are spent. With no guarantee that State or local revenues will be able to keep up with rising expenditures, and no long-term plan in place, the Civic Federation has substantial concerns about how the District will handle a budget shortfall without further straining property taxpayers or reversing the fiscal progress made in recent years.

Read the Report

Acting President's Note

June was a whirlwind month that included two Civic Federation report releases, our 2023 Annual Civic Awards event and the launch of our new website.

On June 14, we released our City roadmap report geared toward Chicago’s new administration, identifying key financial challenges facing the City and offering recommendations. On June 27, we released our analysis of the proposed FY2024 Chicago Public Schools budget, about which we had significant concerns given the long-term instability of the District’s finances. On June 28, we were thrilled to welcome nearly 600 attendees to Navy Pier’s Aon Grand Ballroom, where we celebrated this year’s Civic Award winners, Richard S. Price and Wintrust Financial Corporation, while also honoring our late President Laurence Msall and the late Andrew McKenna. Thank you to everyone who supported and attended this event.

If you haven’t yet seen our new website, take a look! We are pleased to have a fresh design as well as new features that help showcase our research and make the site even more user-friendly. As we continue our search for the next Federation president, it is a truly exciting time for our organization. Onward we go, with much optimism for the future of the Civic Federation and what is possible in government, just as Laurence would have wanted.

Sarah Wetmore

Acting President, Civic Federation

2023 ANNUAL CIVIC AWARDS

Thank you to our members, friends and everyone who supported and participated in this year’s Annual Civic Awards featuring our fantastic honorees, Richard S. Price and Wintrust Financial Corporation, as well as to our generous sponsors. We are deeply grateful for this outpouring of support from the business and civic communities, especially during what has been a most difficult year given the loss of our incredible leader, Laurence Msall.

With that in mind, we would like to extend an extra special thank you to our inaugural Laurence J. Msall Legacy Sponsors: Richard S. Price and Mesirow, Patrick G. & Shirley W. Ryan, and the Steans Family.

Thank you to Barbara Stewart for her moving speech in remembrance of Laurence. Thank you also to Patrick Ryan for his thoughtful remarks in remembrance of the late Andrew McKenna, and to Timothy S. Crane for accepting the Addams-Palmer Award on behalf of Wintrust. We’d also like to thank our Board Chair, Donovan Pepper, for his great work in support of the event and his remarks throughout, as well G. Joseph Consenza for presenting the Addams-Palmer Award, and Chair of the Civic Federation Board of Trustees Adam Hoeflich for presenting the Lyman J. Gage Award. A huge thank you also to everyone who was a part of our three tribute videos honoring Laurence, Wintrust Financial Corporation and Richard S. Price, whose powerful remarks on the importance of civic engagement from the business community touched us all.

We were excited to announce at the event that as part of our ongoing activities honoring Laurence, the Civic Federation has renamed its storied Lyman J. Gage Award. From this point forward, it will be known as the Gage-Msall Award. We look forward to celebrating the first recipient of the renamed Gage-Msall Award next year.

Watch the 2023 Annual Civic Awards

STATEMENT ON THE PASSING OF JIM CROWN

The Civic Federation was saddened to learn of the passing of Jim Crown, son of Civic Federation Trustee Lester Crown and a leading member of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, a longtime partner organization of the Civic Federation. We send our condolences to Lester and the entire Crown family, as well as to our friends at the Civic Committee.

Mr. Crown passed away on Sunday, June 25, at age 70. He was head of the Civic Committee’s public safety task force, which recently announced ambitious plans to help curb gun violence in the City of Chicago. The Civic Federation has looked forward to supporting the Civic Committee as a resource for this endeavor and will continue to do so. We are grateful for Mr. Crown’s dedication to improving our city and region. In addition to his active involvement with the Civic Committee, Mr. Crown was president of Henry Crown & Co., a privately-held Chicago investing firm, and previously served as a director of General Dynamics and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

More information about Mr. Crown’s life and career is available here.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Jill Wolowitz oversees the teams responsible for federal government relations and health policy, corporate communications, human resources, corporate security and facilities.

Under Jill’s direction, HCSC relaunched a modernized annual corporate social responsibility (CSR) report in 2021 and redesigned the organization’s community investment programs by utilizing a framework that amplifies the impact of all five state plans. She also executed the launch of the successful Blue Door Neighborhood Centers, which offer no-cost programming to improve community health through wellness classes, connections to social services and customer engagement.

As the chief of staff to CEO and President Maurice Smith, Jill ensures the organization management team operates holistically and strategy decisions across HCSC are seamless, consistent with the organization’s mission and values, and positively impact employees, clients, members and consumers. She was responsible for creating and maintaining a myriad of ways to keep the organization’s 26,000 employees connected and engaged over the scope of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Jill previously led state and local government relations and community affairs for HCSC’s Illinois Plan. In this role, she was the liaison to the Illinois Legislature and state regulatory agencies and advocated for policies to support a stable health insurance market and increase access to health care. She also oversaw grants and community outreach programs.

Before joining HCSC, Jill held positions in the law departments of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and the American Dental Association. She has a Juris Doctor and LLM from DePaul University College of Law and a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

JILL WOLOWITZ

VICE CHAIR, CIVIC FEDERATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Number of years with the Federation: 9

Committees: Executive Committee, Criminal Justice and Healthcare

What made you want to join the Civic Federation?

I joined the Civic Federation board a number of years ago with the encouragement of my leadership peers at HCSC, which is the largest customer-owned health insurer in the U.S. HCSC operates Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL), where I lead civic engagement and corporate social responsibility. The Civic Federation board felt like a natural fit given my role at HCSC.

The reason I continue to serve is the same reason I joined the organization in the first place: Because I believe we all have a civic duty to be involved in our community. The data-driven research conducted by the Civic Federation is important because it is independent and transparent, which means that people on both sides of the aisle, as well as the public and media, can use it as a tool to create solutions that will help our region thrive.

What do you enjoy most about being a part of the Civic Federation?

At HCSC, I help advocate for government policies to support a stable health insurance market and increase access to health care. That part of my job is a true passion. My colleagues at the Civic Federation share a similar drive to generate long-term solutions for Chicago, Cook County and the State of Illinois. The work of our board impresses me, not just because of the positive outcomes, but because it represents the coming together of representatives across all sectors of civic life, both public and private. The expertise and thoughtfulness of the staff and the guidance of the board are a great combination. This is an organization filled with big hearts and a deep commitment to our region.

What's your favorite Chicago hidden gem?

More often than not, you’ll find me dining at Tufano’s Vernon Park Tap, a terrific family-run Italian restaurant that features home cooking and an intimate and friendly atmosphere. Their chalk-board menu is filled with seriously delectable food.

I also love strolling the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures with family and friends, a museum located on the University of Chicago campus that features collections from West Asia and North Africa. The artwork and antiquities from Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, and other ancient cultures are incredible and there are always programs that shed new insights for me on the culture and art of early civilizations.

What's a project you're working on right now?

This month, HCSC is opening a new location in Mural Park, located in Pilsen. I’m excited about this project because it includes a customer service team that will strengthen our multilingual capabilities to better serve members who are not primarily English speakers. We are committed to this community and are showing it by working alongside the non-profit Skills for Chicagoland’s Future to hire up to 100 local employees, many on the tech side, who will focus on helping community members access their health care more effectively.

This project is a fitting example of how companies develop strong community relationships by directly partnering with community stakeholders. This way, we can better understand the nuances, and unique needs, of the people living there, which ultimately helps us serve them.

Blue Cross Blue Shield was a sponsor of the NASCAR Chicago Street Race. What did you most enjoy about the experience?

We know that the economic health and the vibrancy of our community corresponds with good medical health and wellness. So, it was natural for us to want to help play a role in showcasing our city to tourists and the outside world so they can see how vital Chicago is and that our welcoming city is open for business.

Our theme was “driving access” to health, which makes sense because central to our mission is making health care available to people, no matter who they are or where they live. I enjoyed helping make that connection with an event that is all about inclusivity and presenting Chicago in its best light.

CIVIC FEDERATION IN THE NEWS

The Bond Buyer

June 29, 2023

Alarm bells rise over Chicago Public Schools' future budget gaps

Chicago Tribune

June 27, 2023

Editorial: Jim Crown’s loss is another cruel blow for the city’s efforts against gun violence

WTTW

June 19, 2023

Johnson Set to Start Tackling Chicago’s Pension Woes, Hemmed in by Vow Not to Raise Property Taxes

WBBM Newsradio

June 15, 2023

Chicago City Council should be reduced by half, Civic Federation recommends

Chicago Sun-Times

June 14, 2023

Civic Federation offers revenue, cost-cutting options to confront Chicago’s financial challenges

Crain’s Chicago Business

June 14, 2023

This civic watchdog has some financial and policing advice for Mayor Johnson

LATEST BLOG POSTS

June 23, 2023

Recommendations to Strengthen the Council Office of Financial Analysis

Last week, the Civic Federation released its report, Financial Challenges Facing the Chicago Mayor and the City Council, which provided an overview of the City’s top financial challenges, options for additional revenue sources, financial management options to promote efficiencies and several recommendations. Among these recommendations was a call to expand the budget and authority of the City Council’s Office of Financial Analysis (COFA) as an independent source of information and analysis for City Council.

June 21, 2023

How Should the City of Chicago Evaluate Property Tax Increases?

Throughout the 2023 Chicago mayoral campaign, Mayor Johnson stated that it was his intention to avoid increasing property taxes, citing concerns about the burden already placed on many Chicagoans. But, while the impact of property tax increases on individual homeowners and business owners is an important factor to consider, the new mayoral administration must also weigh the property tax in context of the City’s overall revenue needs and its competitiveness compared to other parts of the region. The property tax should not be ruled out completely. However, decisions about whether to increase the Chicago property tax levy each year should be reviewed and approved by City Council as part of the annual budget process, and should never be assumed automatically.

June 8, 2023

Addressing the Financial Entanglements Between the City of Chicago and Chicago Public Schools

With the upcoming implementation of an elected school board to oversee Chicago Public Schools, the governance of CPS will be separated from the City of Chicago. The 21-member elected school board, set to replace the existing seven-member board appointed by the Chicago mayor, will be phased in beginning in 2025, with the fully elected board in place beginning in 2027. The separation raises questions about the ongoing financial responsibility of the City to the school district and whether partnerships between the two agencies will continue.

June 2, 2023

Celebrating the June 28 Annual Civic Awards and the Legacy of Laurence J. Msall

The Civic Federation is pleased to return to Navy Pier’s Aon Grand Ballroom on Wednesday, June 28 for the 2023 Annual Civic Awards. This event honors one Chicagoan and one Chicago institution each year for their remarkable work toward the betterment of the city of Chicago. Awarded each year are the Lyman J. Gage Award for Outstanding Civic Contribution by a Chicagoan and the Addams-Palmer Award for Exemplary Civic Involvement by a Chicago Institution. This year’s event will also feature a special tribute honoring our late president, Laurence J. Msall.

Interested in learning about Civic Federation membership opportunities?

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