Committee on Budget and Government Operations meeting, September 5, 2024
- When: Thu, Sep 5, 2024, 11:00 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/1006338488
- Transcript: full text (24,613 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 the Budget and Government Operations, chaired by Alderperson Jason C. Ervin, heard six public commenters, approved remote participation for several members and approved the July Rule 45 report. The Office of Budget and Management reported that the city's ARPA funds were 92% obligated and 83% spent, and members asked for detailed breakdowns by program and ward, raised concerns about data on outcomes and delegate agency spending, and urged that unobligated funds be considered for the projected budget deficit. The committee recommended passage of a substitute ordinance amending the 2024 appropriation to add about 36.7 million dollars in federal and state grants, after discussion of HIV funding for Black-led organizations, and of amendments to the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund small grant program raising grant amounts and coverage and creating a loan loss reserve. It also recommended a Neighborhood Opportunity Fund redevelopment agreement with Plant Chicago for a former firehouse at 4459 S. Marshfield and approved three committee and ward office budget transfers.
Topics: ARPA spending, budget deficit, data and transparency, grant appropriations, HIV prevention funding, Neighborhood Opportunity Fund, vacant properties, Plant Chicago redevelopment
Agenda items discussed
- 13:39 Public comment
- 34:57 Rule 59 remote participation for members: passed
- 35:22 Approval of the July Rule 45 report: passed
- 35:36 August 2024 ARPA Road to Recovery report and 2024 recovery plan performance report: discussed
- 1:44:00 Substitute amendment to the 2024 Annual Appropriation Ordinance for additional federal and state grant funds: passed
- 2:00:01 Substitute amendment to Municipal Code Section 16-14 regarding the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund small grant program: passed
- 2:31:11 Redevelopment agreement with Plant Chicago NFP for renovation of the former firehouse at 4459 S. Marshfield: passed
- 2:39:06 Proposed transfers within committee and ward office budgets (Workforce Development, 30th Ward, 40th Ward): passed
Alderpersons who spoke
- Jason C. Ervin (chair): Explained how to read the allocation charts and said any reallocation to new priorities would take money from another program, to be discussed in the 2025 budget process. (56:26); Said all information requested through the chair would be shared with every committee member. (1:07:04); Asked how much of the new HIV funding goes to Black-led organizations, noting higher HIV rates in the Black community and urging funding for smaller groups working on the ground. (1:46:55)
- Walter R. Burnett (alderperson): Asked about the deadlines and plans for obligating and spending the remaining ARPA funds. (36:54)
- Daniel La Spata (alderperson): Asked for details on 151 million dollars of ARPA funds that are allocated but unencumbered and which programs have the largest gaps. (39:12)
- Raymond A. Lopez (alderperson): Asked how many full-time and part-time city positions were created with ARPA funds across all six pillars. (43:13); Asked for a breakdown of 1.3 billion dollars spent on effective governance and essential city services. (44:58); Asked what was spent on the vacant lot reduction strategy and housing programs by ward, and whether any federal dollars went to rehabbing vacant homes. (47:05)
- Samantha Nugent (alderperson): Urged that the roughly 144 million dollars in unobligated ARPA funds be focused on programs that could relieve the budget deficit. (50:25); Requested additional funds for rapid rehousing and accelerated moving events, citing need in her ward and citywide. (53:13); Asked whether the city plans a sweep of grantees to identify unspent funds and whether results will come to the committee. (55:02)
- David H. Moore (alderperson): Said the budget office had told him to look up requested information on a portal and asked that members' requests be answered directly. (58:59); Asked for housing and homelessness spending broken down by ward, recipient organization and ethnicity, citing a senior in his ward awaiting home repairs. (59:44); Asked that the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund process return to alderpersons ranking priorities and providing letters of support, citing a past award he had concerns about. (2:17:11)
- Chris Taliaferro (alderperson): Asked whether the information requested by Alderperson David H. Moore, including delegate agency recipients, would be provided to the committee. (1:06:37)
- Gregory I. Mitchell (alderperson): Requested granular backup for all ARPA expenditures by pillar and ward and asked what community wealth building housing means. (1:07:38); Said the vacant lot strategy should be expanded to long-abandoned houses with a plan to clear title and return properties to community use. (1:10:15); Said he was not convinced of outcomes from community violence intervention spending and asked for outcome data. (1:35:27)
- Nicole T. Lee (alderperson): Asked whether the FY25-26 reserve equals the unobligated 8%, what flexibility exists to reuse funds, and which corporate fund items ARPA could cover given the budget gap. (1:16:29); Asked how program success is measured and how programs will be wound down when ARPA funding ends. (1:19:53); Asked whether ARPA funds had been used to build data systems for tracking spending. (1:23:53)
- Brendan Reilly (alderperson): Said every unobligated ARPA dollar possible should go toward the billion dollar budget gap, even if it means pulling back some program expansions. (1:26:03); Called for better data and consistent performance measures to evaluate return on investment of grant spending. (1:28:41)
- Andre Vasquez Jr. (alderperson): Asked about the status of the data portal and requested budget data in spreadsheet format rather than PDFs. (1:36:17); Asked whether the city has calculated the risk of creating programs it cannot sustain once ARPA funds end. (1:38:02)
- Pat Dowell (alderperson): Supported colleagues' information requests and asked whether more funds could be moved to COVID-19 vaccinations given rising hospitalizations. (1:41:40)
Exchanges between members
- 57:26 The chair responded to Alderperson Samantha Nugent question, explaining how reallocation requests would affect other programs.
- 57:59 Alderperson Samantha Nugent thanked the chair and said funds that cannot be spent should be redirected.
- 58:44 Alderperson David H. Moore thanked Alderperson Raymond A. Lopez for his line of questioning.
- 1:26:27 Alderperson Brendan Reilly said Alderpersons Lopez, Nugent and Moore had all made the point that unobligated ARPA dollars should go to the budget gap.
- 1:31:28 Alderperson Brendan Reilly thanked Chairman Jason C. Ervin for his indulgence.
- 1:41:40 Alderperson Pat Dowell said she supports the points made by Alderpersons Moore, Reilly, Lee, Nugent and Mitchell.
- 1:54:18 Alderperson Raymond A. Lopez said he and the chairman are in full agreement on HIV funding concerns.
- 2:13:26 Alderperson Gregory I. Mitchell said he and Alderperson David H. Moore had discussed the need to be deliberate about Neighborhood Opportunity Fund awards.
- 2:20:50 Alderperson David H. Moore thanked Chairman Gregory I. Mitchell for raising the point.