Committee on Budget and Government Operations meeting, October 27, 2023
- When: Fri, Oct 27, 2023, 10:00 AM (Chicago time)
- Where: City Council Chamber, 2nd Floor, City Hall, 121 North LaSalle Street - Chicago, IL 60602
- Status: Scheduled & Published
- Committee: Committee on Budget and Government Operations
- Video: https://vimeo.com/showcase/8925576/video/878483537
- Transcript: full text (55,432 words, official captions)
Meeting notes
AI-written from the transcript. Speakers are inferred from cues in the recording, so treat names as estimates and check the video at the linked time.
The Committee on Budget and Government Operations held a day of 2024 budget hearings with the City Treasurer's Office, the Department of Administrative Hearings, the Chicago Board of Elections, the Department of Human Resources, and the Department of Law. Members asked about investment returns and pension fund performance, the Catalyst fund and credit unions as municipal depositories, administrative hearing discretion and virtual hearings, second early voting sites, election security and ranked-choice voting, city hiring timelines and workforce diversity, and outside counsel spending and wrongful conviction settlements. The Chief Labor Negotiator explained the difference between the FOP interest arbitration award and the agreement the city reached with the FOP. Two members of the public spoke during public comment. No votes were taken; the hearings were informational and the chair said the committee would continue budget work at its next meeting.
Topics: 2024 budget, City Treasurer, pension funds, administrative hearings, Board of Elections, early voting, city hiring, workforce diversity, Law Department, police settlements
Agenda items discussed
- 5:21 Public comment
- 13:14 2024 budget hearing: City Treasurer's Office: discussed
- 1:26:49 2024 budget hearing: Department of Administrative Hearings: discussed
- 2:00:41 2024 budget hearing: Chicago Board of Election Commissioners: discussed
- 4:22:35 2024 budget hearing: Department of Human Resources: discussed
- 5:49:58 2024 budget hearing: Department of Law: discussed
Alderpersons who spoke
- Jason C. Ervin (chair): Thanked the Treasurer, a resident of his ward, for her office's community work. (1:19:17); Said administrative law judges lack discretion while the Law Department has some, and encouraged members to work with the Legislative Reference Bureau on a one-time forgiveness ordinance for residents. (1:51:10); Asked the Board of Elections about progress on securing a new warehouse space. (3:09:44)
- Nicole T. Lee (alderperson): Asked whether hiring outside contractors instead of employees reduces contributions to city pension funds. (1:16:49); Asked about time to disposition for building violations and requested data on bike lane and pet waste citations, citing rat problems. (1:35:15); Asked whether the Board of Elections budget fully covers the 2024 elections and supported a second early voting site per ward. (2:21:18)
- Matthew J. O'Shea (alderperson): Asked the Treasurer's team to explain the roughly $400 million in portfolio returns and the outlook for next year. (25:17)
- Emma Mitts (alderperson): Asked for details on the Treasurer's $25 million mortgage investment program and how residents access it. (34:01); Asked about transparency in banks' lending practices. (36:53); Asked the Board of Elections about challenges after precinct consolidation, election judge pay and staffing, and polling places that opened late. (2:41:12)
- Pat Dowell (alderperson): Asked the Treasurer about the Catalyst fund and potential new investments, including electric vehicle charging. (41:34); Asked whether the Law Department had issued an opinion on allowing credit unions to become municipal depositories. (43:59); Thanked the Corporation Counsel for the Law Department briefings and asked about the use of outside counsel in wrongful conviction cases. (6:15:29)
- Walter R. Burnett (alderperson): Asked the Board of Elections for a breakdown of minority- and women-owned business contracting and said spending with Black-owned firms was not acceptable. (2:10:38); Offered to work with the Board and the Black Caucus to refer vendors from members' wards. (2:15:45); Asked the Law Department about new positions shown in its budget, which staff said were shifted from grant funding. (6:32:42)
- Gilbert Villegas (alderperson): Asked when draft ordinance language changing the Catalyst fund would be available and what the Treasurer needs from the Law Department. (1:00:41); Asked about election cybersecurity, whether IT security is handled in-house, and minority vendor percentages. (2:47:36); Asked about the citizenship affirmation required for voter registration and penalties for false statements. (2:49:56)
- Monique L. Scott (alderperson): Praised the Treasurer's financial education events and asked for one in her ward. (1:05:20); Asked why police misconduct settlements are paid by the city rather than by the officer or the police union. (6:42:04)
- Bennett R. Lawson (alderperson): Asked how the Treasurer's portfolio benchmarks its returns and what council requirements limit returns. (1:06:31); Asked about vacancies in the Department of Human Resources, an HR handbook for ward offices, and recruiting at local colleges. (5:03:53); Asked whether the city tracks LGBTQ employees through self-identification. (5:07:56)
- Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth (alderperson): Asked why community banks matter and how the Treasurer's work relates to calls for reparations. (1:12:49); Asked whether language line services could be extended to aldermanic offices and about disability and bias trainings at Administrative Hearings. (1:44:46); Asked the Board of Elections about recruiting young election judges and early voting hours. (2:52:55)
- Samantha Nugent (alderperson): Thanked the Director of Administrative Hearings and her team for their work. (1:34:57)
- Lamont J. Robinson (alderperson): Asked whether administrative law judges have discretion to waive fines for first-time violators who corrected the problem. (1:48:58); Said constituents feel the city relies on fines and suggested a grace provision for residents without prior violations. (1:51:56)
- Marty Quinn (alderperson): Asked what is needed to add a second early voting location per ward. (2:17:00); Said vote-by-mail drop boxes have reassured voters and should be marketed. (2:18:11); Raised safety concerns about polling places in Chicago Public Schools and asked about coordination with CPS. (2:18:34)
- Andre Vasquez Jr. (alderperson): Asked about reductions in the Board of Elections' advertising budget. (2:27:42); Asked whether the Board has analyzed potential savings from ranked-choice voting compared with runoff elections. (2:31:04); Asked whether the city could hire staff directly instead of contracting for shelter staffing. (4:45:13)
- Maria E. Hadden (alderperson): Asked how much county and other government partners will contribute to 2024 election costs and how members can help recruit election judges. (2:33:14); Asked about heightened security planning for polling sites and poll workers ahead of the national elections. (2:34:59)
- Matthew J. Martin (alderperson): Asked whether the Board of Elections will take part in the state's ranked-choice voting task force and requested data on runoff election costs. (2:37:06); Asked about the HR and budget office hiring working group, the new enterprise resource planning software timeline, and time-to-fill data. (4:55:42); Asked about the new risk manager, the Law Department contact for consent decree issues, and accountability provisions in the proposed FOP contract. (7:02:49)
- Byron Sigcho-López (alderperson): Asked for policy recommendations to reduce the city's liability from police misconduct cases. (6:35:11); Raised concern about insurance companies denying claims for homeowners and asked about more enforcement staff. (6:38:50); Supported addressing fire department hiring barriers and local hiring. (6:40:38)
- William Conway (alderperson): Asked about the total of settlements and judgments paid in 2023. (6:48:50); Asked what role the Law Department plays in reviewing city contracts, including the GardaWorld and shelter staffing contracts and the FOP agreement. (6:50:34); Asked whether the arbitration clause written by the arbitrator was part of the agreement the city reached with the FOP. (6:58:53)
- Stephanie D. Coleman (alderperson): Asked whether there is a cap on violations issued to businesses, saying ward superintendents' tickets were being thrown out. (7:17:05)
Exchanges between members
- 1:00:41 Villegas said he wanted to build on Dowell's questions about the Catalyst fund.
- 1:00:16 Villegas thanked Mitts for her questions about the Treasurer's investments.
- 1:51:10 Ervin responded to Robinson's question on fine discretion and encouraged him to pursue an ordinance.
- 2:23:49 Lee echoed Quinn's comments about vote-by-mail drop boxes.
- 2:37:09 Martin followed up on Vasquez's questions about ranked-choice voting.
- 5:09:24 Manaa-Hoppenworth built on Lawson's point about tracking LGBTQ employees.
- 6:40:38 Sigcho-López echoed Dowell's comments about fire department hiring practices.
- 6:42:17 Scott returned to Dowell's question about police settlement payouts.
- 6:49:02 Conway echoed Dowell's praise of the Corporation Counsel.
- 7:34:56 Ervin thanked Vice Chair Nicole T. Lee for presiding during parts of the hearings.