By: Mark Glennon*
An original and thorough report from the Better Government Association got buried under all the other big news recently. It’s also particularly timely because details on the City of Chicago’s budget will be coming out today.
The BGA report is about the city’s growing misuse of one, huge budget category to hide how it spends money. It’s called “finance general” in the budget, and it is now consuming nearly half of city spending.
That might seem like something for accountants with green eyeshades, but it’s not. It’s as if the city is sticking nearly half of its spending disclosures under the label of “other” to avoid scrutiny.
This is important because abuse of finance general hides the true operational costs of some of the city’s largest departments, including the Chicago Fire Department, Chicago Police Department, and Department of Water Management, the BGA said.
For one small example, the BGA cites $10 million for arts and culture initiatives under finance general over the past two years, rather than with the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. And since 2015, the BGA says there have been finance general appropriations for pass-through spending that the city distributes to non-profits and other third parties providing services to residents – in addition to the hundreds of millions distributed as part of departmental budgets.
Most importantly, because the finance general spending is explicitly non-departmental, there is no hearing in the City Council dedicated to its contents. So, nearly half the budget goes unscrutinized not just by the public but by the council, as the BGA explained. The BGA summarized it this way, in bold face: “In 2023, that meant that 43.2% of the taxpayer spending authorized by City Council underwent almost no public inquiry or debate.”
Abuse of the finance general budgeting has been growing. The BGA found that, as a percentage of the overall budget, it increased from 33.3% of in 2011 to 43.2% in 2023. The high point was actually in 2020 at 46.9%, but the massive influx of pandemic relief funds into the departmental budgets brought it down a bit. As those federal dollars are spent, the trend is once more upward, says the BGA.
The most quickly growing elements of the finance general category, the BGA found, are increases in pensions and benefits, bonds and loans payments and interest, and outside contracting, as well as the capital construction costs paid out of the water and sewer funds.
“Alderpersons’ best opportunity to publicly explore the finance general section comes on the first day of hearings,” says the BGA. However, “in recent years there has been little detailed discussion of finance general appropriations.”
Anybody planning on taking a serious look at Chicago’s upcoming budget should read the BGA report in full.
*Mark Glennon is founder of Wirepoints.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
“When media reports anything about public finance, this is what they should be talking about. But you may have noticed they only seem to talk about this thing called ‘the budget’. The budget is something very different. For government, the budget is not so much an accounting tool as a propaganda hallucination. Our media and our schools have dumbed us down on all things finance, and government likes it that way. By diverting our attention away to the petty and irrelevant issues our media, our schools, and our politicians create an intentional void and vaccum in the public mind. So… Read more »
And what most astounding is not one rubber stampen aldercridder says a thing???
Don’t expect Chicago Media to do anything to challenge much of anything. Besides a few brave journalists with integrity to pursue the truth I find the lack of reporting irresponsible and damaging to the republic. The Washington post should never be a mouthpiece for politicians and intelligence agencies but sadly it is and it’s run by a control freak American oligarch who desires much more control. Not sure much is being reported as we are in a news blackout like a communist state. Not much freedom of the press or speech.
It’s not blacked out yet. We have more news sources than ever and the status quo is pushing back as had as they can because we do have a voice!
You are like the dazed boxer getting back to his feet, not realizing the fight is over.
You say it’s over at least twice a week, but you keep coming back.
You speak from La La Land yet again. Always dazed and confused. Once civil rights are eroded, minimized, and reduced to words by what is supposed to be freedom of speech and freedom of the press we are no longer living in a constitutional Republic. When are you going to realize that the march towards totalitarian society is already here as the apparatus that was once used to target our enemies abroad is now used against the American people? You fail to understand these basic premises time and time again because you feel that because your side controls everything we… Read more »
My side? You troll this site every day and do your best to convince everyone to bend over and take it.
Civil rights won’t erode further if everyone recognizes that we have a voice and can make a difference.
HEY EVERYBODY!!! We should all give up now because some depressing goofball troll said so. Disregard all the folks raging unanimously against city politicians, it’s only your imagination because Mr. Sad State said so. LOL
Dave the Turnaround Specialist is at it again. A goofball troll didn’t grow up on the 2000 block of Mohawk or raise his family in Beverly. Propaganda is able to manipulate the population effectively with no other sources being allowed to express other viewpoints. You are clearly sweeping up the empty buildings when there is no one left. I still haven’t heard one concrete plan from you besides you smoking tons of Hopium. Sounding like a keyboard warrior more and more Dave. I find you to be on the guy on the street corner flipping the signs for the “Going… Read more »
Nobody is stopping you from giving up. What I have a problem with is you giving up a few times a week and trying your hardest to take everyone down with you. You present yourself as a team player and quit at every game.
Go quit on some Democrat websites if that’s your thing.
Nobody is stopping you from giving up. Answer: Illinois gave up on law abiding taxpayers like me a long time ago. No issues giving up on Illinois, enjoyed it very much and have no problems with advising others leave as well. What I have a problem with is you giving up a few times a week and trying your hardest to take everyone down with you. Answer: I can give up as many times as I choose. Comments are opinions and your response sounds a bit immature. Not sure how I take everyone down with me? Adults can ignore whatever… Read more »
“Illinois gave up on law abiding taxpayers like me a long time ago.”
I’m not sure how you’ve come to the conclusion that a constitutional republic can give up on you when everyone knows participation is critical to it’s viability.
“…No problems with advising others to leave as well.”
Do you root against you local sports team too? Do you attend every game and encourage players and fans to abandon the team? Let me know how that works out.
People are fighting back! The internet is empowering citizen journalists! The Chicago Media wishes it could get 500K views on a video breaking down Chicago corruption. This guy gets it and does an awesome job telling it how things work here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFw0HNObAOA