Chicago's budget would keep 368 police officer jobs frozen and make 132 civilian. The Police Department faces the Council Wednesday

Budget officials laid out the staffing plan at Monday's hearing: 600 academy recruits, slightly more than expected departures. O'Shea said every district is down from a year ago.

By Chicago PoliticsUpdated Oct 27, 2026

Chicago's 2027 budget would keep 368 police officer jobs frozen and turn 132 more into civilian positions, City budget officials told alderpersons at Monday's budget hearing. The Police Department goes before the same committee on Wednesday, Oct. 28.

Why it matters: a frozen position stays in the budget on paper but is not paid for, so it can't be filled. How many officers are on the street in each district is one of the questions residents raise most with their alderperson, and Monday's hearing put numbers on what the budget plans.

What the budget office said

Last year's 500. Ald. Rossana Rodríguez-Sánchez (33rd) asked whether the 2026 budget froze 500 police officer positions. The budget office said it did (watch at 2:09:37). A budget official later explained that frozen positions remain in the Police Department's budget but their cost is taken out through its "turnover" target, the amount it expects to save from vacancies (watch at 6:58:49).

What changes in 2027. Of those 500, 132 officer positions would be converted to civilian jobs, and the remaining 368 would stay frozen, the budget office said (watch at 2:10:51). Eleven sergeant positions would also be frozen (watch at 7:00:00). More than 500 police officer positions currently sit vacant, an official said, a number that moves through the year as academy classes graduate.

Hiring. The Department hopes to put 600 recruits through the academy in 2027, officials said, slightly more than the number of officers expected to leave through retirement, other departures and promotion (watch at 2:12:29).

What members said

Ald. Matthew O'Shea (19th) said the 132 converted positions mean fewer officers in districts across the city, and that every district is down from a year ago (watch at 2:01:12). He also pressed officials on lieutenants and captains who turn down promotions to commander because exempt ranks can earn less than the captains under them. A managing deputy budget director said the City aims to put a new pay schedule for exempt ranks in place by July 1, with money reserved in the 2027 budget.

Ald. Marty Quinn (13th) asked how many officers could retire next year and how many officers the department has now; officials did not have the current count at the hearing (watch at 2:12:29).

Civilianization means moving desk and support jobs from sworn officers to civilian employees, so officers can return to patrol. The administration presented the 132 conversions in that light.

What our records add

This committee has asked before. At a Nov. 6, 2025 budget hearing, one member said the Office of Public Safety Administration was created to save money through civilianization, yet officers still do civilian work, according to our meeting notes.

The 2026 budget passed narrowly. The Council's alternative revenue plan, the core of the 2026 budget, passed 29 to 19 on Dec. 19, 2025. Rodríguez-Sánchez was told Monday that the 500-position freeze "was passed by the majority."

How each ward voted

29 yea, 19 nay, 2 not voting · Dec 19, 2025 · Passed

Yea Nay Not voting

SO2025-0021719: the roll call, the timeline and the documents

What's next

Wed., Oct. 28, 9:30 a.m.: the Police Department and Department of Public Health appear before the budget committee. Meeting page.
Thu., Nov. 5: Fire, Emergency Management and Communications, the Office of Public Safety Administration and the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.
Tue., Nov. 10: Police Board and the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability.

The full schedule is in our budget hearing guide. Video and transcripts of each hearing are posted on the meeting pages.

Sources: Chicago Politics: Oct. 26 hearing transcript; Chicago Sun-Times: Top mayoral aides launch defense of Johnson's $17.6B budget.