Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s proposal to extend the program for an additional six years keeps unchanged the percentage of city contracts set aside for firms owned by Black, Latino and Asian Chicagoans (26%) and for firms owned by women (6%). However, Lightfoot’s plan would loosen some of the requirements for firms to qualify for the program.
A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.