Chicago Mayor Johnson stands firm on proposed city budget, corporate head tax plan
CHICAGO (WLS) -- It's a proposed budget some Chicago City Council members have continued to call dead on arrival because it includes a corporate head tax.
Despite the opposition from at least half of the council, Governor JB Pritzker, civic and business groups, Mayor Brandon Johnson refuses to budge.
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"It is deeply disturbing right now that we have leaders in this state that are prepared to defend millionaires and billionaires and not the people in Austin and not the people in Roseland, what is wrong with us?" Johnson said.
In a fiery response to questions from reporters, Johnson says Tuesday's election night democratic victories in New York and other municipalities is proof people want his model of governing, which the mayor says is standing up for working people. However, many alders argue a head tax is a job killer, and being against it is standing up for working people.
"I think you're going to see companies across the city, leave the city, leave the state," 19th Ward Ald. Matt O'Shea said.
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"I've had this discussion with the mayor before, if you attack businesses in the way that he has over the last couple of years, you're essentially setting yourself up for failure because you're not bringing in the taxes you need to run city programs," 32nd Ward Ald. Scott Waguespack.
Alders against the head tax would like to see the mayor present more cuts and efficiencies in the budget before asking big companies with over 100 full-time workers to pay a $21 a month per employee tax, and they are also calling on the mayor to implement more of the savings recommendations from an Ernst & Young budget report Johnson commissioned.
"It's incredible to see somebody spend $3.2 million and then ignore the vast majority of those recommendations that would put us on the right path," Waguespack said.
As the mayor stands firm on his budget proposal, S&P Global ratings warned the city about a credit downgrade.
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"This budget is a very sound balanced budget, of which 65% of this budget is structural in nature," Johnson said.
The mayor wants City Council to vote on his budget before Thanksgiving. It is likely to be very close. If there is a tie, Johnson is the tiebreaker vote.
