All Week Long
Originally published on dailyherald.com 06/21/23 | Photo: Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times file
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said no new taxes or fees are necessary to close an expected $86 million budget gap next fiscal year, caused largely by reduced state funding and medical costs for asylum-seekers.
Total county spending is anticipated to reach nearly $8.8 billion in 2024, according to county forecasts. Preckwinkle suggested departmental belt-tightening and holding open some of the nearly 4,000 vacant jobs will help close the budget gap without needing new revenue sources.
"We're going to be able to do this," she said.
A large chunk of the budget gap is being blamed on adjustments to the state formula for distributing personal property replacement taxes, with county officials anticipating $58 million less than it received this year.
In 2022, the county received $184 million from personal property replacement tax disbursements, but county finance officials expect the state will distribute just $75 million next year.
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