-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration hoped to trim almost $9 million from the 2025 budget by getting contractors to go along with the voluntary reductions, but has so far netted just $450,000, Chief Procurement Officer Sharla Roberts told aldermen. Pan-Oceanic, which holds several city contracts to upgrade streetscapes, replace lead service lines and replace water mains, said it was “not in a position to accept” the cuts because it was bound by union pay rates and material costs.
SIGN UP HERE FOR FREE WIREPOINTS DAILY NEWSLETTER
FOLLOW US
WIREPOINTS ORIGINAL STORIES
Audio and summary Illinois bill would override local law to allow homeless living in all public parks – Wirepoints
April 14, 2026
27 Comments
If this bill passes, say goodbye to local control over all Illinois parks and expect to see open drug and alcohol use, needles, no sanitation and fire hazards, but no ordinary park users.
Mark Glennon on AM560’s Morning Answer: Chicago Fiscal Crisis Worse Than Pre-Bankruptcy Detroit, HIV Surge and Public Health Threat From Open Borders Goes Unreported
April 10, 2026
2 Comments
Summary and audio linked here.
Mark Glennon on AM560’s Morning Answer: Chicago pension buyout plan mostly shifts debt rather than eliminating it, property tax surge doubles inflation over three decades
April 3, 2026
9 Comments
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
WBEZ and Chicago Sun-Times falsely blame Texas Gov. Abbott for 2020 to 2024 surge in Chicago Latino HIV, AIDS infections – Wirepoints Quickpoint
March 31, 2026
11 Comments
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
What the vendors should do is raise their prices twice as much as they would have then lower it by 3% then tell Brandon look we lowered the price just as you asked. No different than non stop cost overruns.
This is Pin-head’s plan to balance the budget. No cutting of “da programs” or reduction in work force, or perhaps a reduction in salaries (like private business sometimes does) or focus on waste, fraud and abuse….nope…lets ask the vendors who were awarded projects and work by the City to take less money…that’s the ticket. Pin Head.
Spend, spend, spend Dems have a habit of trying to pay with bits of string and a recital of their latest self penned poem when the check comes around.