Welcome to Newswire — your weekly guide to Chicago government, civic action and what action we can take to make our city great, featuring public meeting coverage by City Bureau’s Documenters.

Quote/Term of the Week

Head tax / noun

A tax that imposes the same fixed amount on every individual in a class or group.

Ex: Mayor Brandon Johnson proposed a head tax on local corporations in order to establish revenue for a new Community Safety Fund.

Back to the [budget] drawing board

On Monday, the City Council’s finance committee overwhelmingly rejected Mayor Brandon Johnson’s revenue plan, striking down a key proponent of his 2026 budget proposal . 

Committee members voted 25-10 against the plan, which generated controversy because of the controversial Community Safety surcharge, also referred to as the “corporate head tax.” The proposed tax would have charged $21 per employee each month to companies with 100 or more full-time employees who work 50% of their time in Chicago. 

Critics of the head tax said that it will drive away much-needed business from Chicago. Gov. J.B. Pritzker also spoke out against it. Supporters disagree, saying the tax helps ensure corporations pay their fair share and provide funding for vital services. Chicago’s last head tax for businesses was phased out in 2014.

The failed vote could throw a wrench into the mayor’s strategy to boost funding for social services even as the city’s Department of Family and Support Services faces major cuts next year.

City leaders estimated the tax would garner $100 million annually, which would establish a Community Safety Fund.

New to this year’s budget, the fund is a part of the mayor’s plan to prioritize dollars for social services, health care and housing. According to Budget Director Annette Guzman, that would include investments for specific services such as violence reduction and intervention programs, domestic and gender-based violence services, youth employment, victim support programs and trauma-informed trainings for various departments. 

Nearly one-quarter of the funding for GBV next year — about $3.5 million — was to come from the new Community Safety Fund. Now that the plan to generate money for that fund has been scuttled, it’s not clear how else city officials will come up with those dollars for domestic and gender-based violence prevention. 

Ald. Nicole Lee (11th Ward), who has been very vocal about the importance of funding GBV and domestic violence support services, also criticized the head tax. Lee believes that while the tax won’t necessarily drive out the pre-existing businesses in Chicago, it will stifle growth. “Chicago needs to think more about, how do we grow our way out of the situation that we're in, versus the taxes,” she said.

  • Asynchronous Evening Coverage: 2026 Chicago Budget Hearing: Independent Offices & Regulatory Agencies by Katie Busch

What you can do:

What do you think about the corporate head tax? How should the city generate more money for key services? Click here to find your ward and contact your alder.

Follow along with Chicago Documenters this #BudgetSzn🤑. We’re covering every budget meeting leading up to City Council finalizing the spending plan at the end of the year. Follow our work at docs.org, Twitter.com and Bluesky.

CTA backs off the cliff

The Chicago Transit Authority has finally been rescued from its fiscal cliff, thanks to a $1.5 billion funding package passed by state lawmakers in October that will avoid massive service cuts and layoffs at CTA, Metra and Pace. The legislation also brings the three major transit agencies under a new governing system, the Northern Illinois Transit Authority, and eliminates the Regional Transit Authority.

The 2026 CTA budget now is absent of fare hikes, service cuts and layoffs, and will include plans for expanding service lines. Among the services the CTA plans to bring with its new funding is 24-hour Orange Line service to Midway Airport and free fixed-route rides for paratransit riders. 

The free fixed-route rides are meant to offset changes to paratransit access authorized earlier this year. The ADA Paratransit 2025 Funding Amendment established a monthly cap on the Rideshare Access Program and Taxi Access Program, which covers part of the cost for rideshares for ADA-eligible riders. 

Back in August, we reported that Chicagoans with disabilities turned out in force to urge RTA to not go forward with the cuts reducing the maximum number of rides from eight per day to 30 per month.

“A 30-ride limit, while it may seem like a minor adjustment on a spreadsheet, would be a devastating blow for people who rely on this service,” said Larry Dean, economic justice organizer for Access Living. “It would force many people in the disability community to make impossible choices: Do I go to work or see my doctor? Do I attend my class or visit my family for the holidays?

Despite the bailout, there is an expected budget gap in 2027 due to certain funds running out including $256.9 million America Rescue Plan and $72 million one-time allocation from the Regional Transit Authority received earlier this year to delay the fiscal cliff.

What you can do:

Catch up on the headlines:

  • CTA OKs Budget With No Cuts or Fare Hikes; Major Service Boosts Planned When New Public Funding Arrives | WTTW 

  • We haven’t saved transit yet: What comes after the fiscal cliff | Streetsblog Chicago

  • What caused Chicago’s transit funding crisis—and what could fix it? | UChicago News

A version of this story was first published in the November 19, 2025 issue of the Newswire, an email newsletter that is your weekly guide to Chicago government, civic action and what we can do to make our city great. You can sign up for the weekly newsletter here.

Have thoughts on what you'd like to see in this feature? Email Civic Editor Dawn Rhodes at dawn@citybureau.org.