Cook County Board Finance Committee’s Mid-Year Budget Meetings
July 31, 2024

Following the death of Cook County Commissioner Dennis Deer (D-2nd Dist), the Democratic Party ward committee persons whose wards include part or all of the 2nd District, met and elected Michael Scott.  He will serve as the 2nd District Commissioner until December, when the winner of the November election will take office for the remaining 2 years of the term.  Commissioner Scott joined the Finance Committee for this last day of mid-year budget hearings.  

Following are some of the highlights of the meetings with the (1) State’s Attorney, (2) Chief Judge, (3) Inspector General, (4) Secretary to the Board of Commissioners, (5) Head of the Veterans Assistance Commission, and (6) Public Defender.

Meeting with State’s Attorney Kimberly Foxx

• After several years of a significant number of unfilled positions, SA Foxx reported that the office has a net increase of 40 employees so far, with 75 new graduates expected to join after successfully passing the bar exam.  This is the highest “class” in years, more than the classes from the last 2 years combined.  There has also been a 30% drop in resignations as compared to last year.
• SA Foxx attributed the turnaround in hiring and retention in part to the increase in salaries recently approved by the Board after a compensation study completed late last year.  
• Also helpful, said SA Foxx, is the office’s participation in the County’s retention bonus program this past year.  
• Finally, there is the increase in the hiring of support staff which results in the attorneys being able to spend less time on administrative work and more time on legal work.  
• SA Foxx would like to see the office continue to add to the number of support staff and technology positions, saying that in most offices there are 2 support staff per attorney, while in the SA office, it is the opposite.
• SA Foxx was asked about a recent Sun-Times story about the lack of government corruption cases brought by the SA office.  SA Foxx said the office does have a public corruption unit, but that the US Attorney’s office, which has traditionally brought most of the corruption cases in this area, has far more resources, including the use of the FBI for investigations.
• The SA office received $2.4 M in federal American Rescue Plan (ARPA) dollars for the office’s gun crimes strategy unit.  SA Foxx said that the unit was started in 2017 by putting assistant state’s attorneys in police districts which had the most gun incidents.  ARPA has allowed expansion.  SA Foxx thinks the office will be able to sustain the efforts through other funding sources once the ARPA dollars run out.
• SA Foxx said that the Pre-Trial Fairness Act, which went into effect in Sept. 2023, has had a smooth roll-out in her office.

Meeting with the office of the Chief Judge Timothy Evans

• Chief Judge Evans also had good news on the hiring front, with 23% fewer vacancies at this point as compared to last year.  He attributed the improvement to the office’s use of a new hiring system platform called Jazz HR, which prospective employees find easier to use.
• The Chief Judge reported that the program to resolve eviction cases has helped 55,000 tenants, as well as small landlords, and has been honored nationally.  
• The latest Restorative Justice Community Court has just opened in Commissioner Miller’s 4th District.  The Chief Judge said he is considering adding 4 more such courts, 3 in this next fiscal year in the 5th, 14th, and 16th Commissioner districts.
• The Chief Judge said that the pilot for extending the hours of the Domestic Violence Court for protective orders has shown him that there is a need to have the court operate 24/7.  He plans to talk to the other County officials who provide support to see if and when this can be accomplished.
• One remaining impact of Covid is the continued use of hybrid and remote hearings and other court proceedings, which the Chief Judge said offers a number of advantages. For example, witnesses can appear remotely, making it easier to get their participation.
• The Chief Judge’s web site has a number of statistics posted, including for the implementation of the Pre-Trial Fairness Act, which eliminated cash bail in Sept. 2023.  Among other things: (a) in 18% of the criminal cases, the State’s Attorney files for detention of the accused, which is granted 60% of the time; (b) of those defendants released (whether it be on their own reconnaissance or on electronic monitoring), 88% come back to court for future proceedings on time; (c) 87% of the time, the defendants who have been released pending trial are not charged with any new offenses.  Of those released, only 1% are accused of violent offenses that occur during that release.  See https://www.cookcountycourt.org/court-reports-statistics. 
• There has been much discussion with the Board in the past on the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (“JTDC”), and this continued at this meeting.  Chief Judge Evans said that the contracts approved by the Board with Chapin Hall of the University of Chicago to identify best practices regarding juveniles accused of crimes are on track.  They are looking at creating assessment centers where youths would first be sent and then, when appropriate, the young people could be sent to a center of care that would house 10 to 20 youths, in lieu of the JTDC (which currently houses 210).  The Chief Judge wants to do a pilot program, and he has identified both an assessment center and center of care for young women, and he hopes to have one for young men soon.  
• Commissioner Kevin Morrison was very critical of the JTDC Superintendent for not knowing how many juveniles at the JTDC have identified themselves as LGBTQ.  The Superintendent said that there are opportunities for the youths to self-identify if they wish, but his concern is the safety of all those in his care, regardless of identity.  Comm. Morrison is concerned that LGBTQ juveniles are not getting the care they need, remembering the abuse that he endured in school.  After some testy exchanges, the two agreed to meet separately and discuss further, and Comm. Lowry asked to be included in that discussion.

Meeting with Inspector General Tirrell Paxton

• Under budget for the 6 mos. of fiscal year   $1,024,314 out of budgeted $1,078,193; will stay within budget rest of year
• 19 FTE budgeted; 3 vacancies—working currently to fill them
• Intergovernmental agreement with MWRD involves a payback, so a wash in budget

Meeting with Secretary to the Board Lynne Turner

• Challenges in retaining and filling vacancies (due to burn out, family responsibilities)
• 13 FTE budgeted; 9 filled, 4 vacancies (improved from the beginning of this fiscal year)
• New board room is expected to be done by Dec. 2024, but everyone needs training on using the technology, etc. so won’t be used for a while
• The room will have ADA accessibility , closed caption on video, electronic voting (have to be in the room to use it), QR code for agendas instead of print

Meeting with Veterans Assistance Commission Head Elizabeth Soto

• 11 budgeted FTE, 8 vacant
• Mainly provides emergency aid for veterans—$270,000 to 1,287 veterans so far this year 
• Under budget mainly because of hiring issues
• Grant funding from Federal government coming along well
• Commissioner Trevor and others want more satellite offices in home districts using current commissioner offices—many veterans have difficulty getting to VAC office near Stroger campus

Meeting with Public Defender Sharone R. Mitchell, Jr.

• Just under budget on YTD spent 95%—$44,588,108
• Wants lower caseloads for attorneys—still too high compared to national standards
• 828 FTE budgeted with 694 filled; 60 more will be filled by year end
• New computerized case load management system
• Have classes of newly graduated lawyers going through training in PD office to work there once they have passed the bar exam 
• Some grants have lapsed due to not getting the programming organized; Freedom Defense Center (in Austin) grant was successful; this helps integrate and support accused into programs to help with housing, work, health, etc.
• Challenges include case load amount, space issues, technology issues, hiring process issues
• Current programs being funded by ARPA should be sustainable after 2026 when ARPA ends

Observers:  Priscilla Mims and Karin Hribar

Cook County Board Finance Committee Mid-Year Budget Hearings
​July 30, 2024

9:30 am Cook County Treasurer - Maria Pappas and staff
Highlights:

• 70% of all tax bills have been paid as of today with a due date of Aug. 1
• Each cycle about 200,000 pins are not paid on time
• Overall there is a 98% collection rate countywide 
• There are those pins that are chronically delinquent - many are vacant land - an example was given that Ford Heights has 1400 pins that have not paid in 30 years
• The tax system needs to be changed and she has a Policy Group that is working with Springfield to see what changes can be made.
• Her office has done several studies that can be accessed on their website that are about the problems with the present tax structure. She encouraged everyone to read her studies.
• Many taxpayers do not understand the system or the exemptions. She has a Refund Project that will refund about 10,000 individuals this year. 
• Interest on late payments has been reduced from 18% to 9% (she took credit for this) and now has implemented a payment plan process for those who cannot pay all at once. 
• The office does outreach to all communities and has information available in a multitude of languages. 
• At the tax sale approximately 54,000 pins are offered and about 7,000 are actually sold. Most of those will end up being redeemed. 
• Setting up an AI unit that she hopes will be used to analyze date. Needs to assemble a team that will be able to mine the data

10am Cook County Sheriff - Tom Dart and staff
Highlights:

• Slowed civilian hiring to make budget
• Taking away more guns from those with revoked FOID cards.
• Doesn’t like to ticket for vehicle equipment problems. Likes to work with owners to repair the vehicles instead.
• 80% of inmates in some type of program. EX. Dog training program helps with aggression control. Agribusiness program for learning about a business. 
• Comm. Britton asked about dealing with Mental Health (MH) issues. Sheriff stated that about 40% of inmates have MH issues. Cermak deals with those who have severe issues but they didn’t have the capacity to deal with everyone so he started his own program. Talked about a possible day program at the Boot Camp for those with low level MH issues but concerns with funding and not sure if this is continuing. 
• Comm. Britton also asked about why with the jail population down there has not been a reduction in the budget for salaries - fewer personnel needed. Sheriff stated that they are still short staffed (240 positions open) and the reason the budget is not down is because of the salary increases approved by the CC Board.
• Comm. Anaya asked about licensure of those on staff working with the MI and about insurance coverage for services rendered. Sheriff stated that staff was in appropriate roles and that while services may be covered by Medicaid the sheriff does not have the ability to bill. All billing is done by Cermak. 
• Anaya also asked about Electronic Monitoring. Sheriff state that there are about 1400 now on his EM program. The number has been slowing decreasing. Any violations due to a change in the law now go to a judge who makes a determination but the judges “do not violate very many”. 
• Comm. Quezada had questions about the Co-Responder model for MH calls and questioned the Sheriff’s Treatment Response Teams (TRT) for MH calls. The Sheriff stated that getting trained professionals to respond to calls with officers proved to be too expensive so their teams use tablets that can connect someone in crisis to a MH professional. The program has resulted in a decrease in calls from some households. The sheriff also said he is tired of hearing about programs that are all talk and no action - he wants to get the right people to the door and thinks they are doing that pretty well.
• Quezada also asked about the number of inmates housed elsewhere and the cost to the county. The Sheriff stated that there are 27 inmates in other jails right now - not for capacity reasons but for safety reasons - and there is about $500,000 budget for that with about $200,000 spent to date. 
• Comm. Stamps raised the concern that the facility is not conducive to rehab for young people and wanted to know if they do research on best practices and how do they track success. Sheriff Dart said he is always looking for new ideas and success is measured by the number that do not return and the number that continue after release with the services they get connected with while in his custody. She also suggested that he consider an apprentice program with Chicago Public Schools to encourage employment at the Jail and that could help with the employment situation. Dart liked that idea. 
• There were more questions about billing for services, MH treatment for jail personnel as well as for the inmates, technology updates and the new helicopter. Sheriff said he would provide metrics on the helicopter use and the ongoing cost of housing and maintaining the helicopter. 

12:17pm Cook County Clerk - Cedric Giles and staff
Highlights:

• Now have a GPS tracking system for all election equipment in November
• New voter check-in system for November that will allow voters to update their signatures
• Sample ballots will be posted on their website
• The Recording Division has a new cashier system and they are in the process of digitalizing all records from 1871-1974.
• Commissioners were excited about the Pilot Program of partnering with the township offices for access to records of the Clerks office. Trial is running in Palatine and it may expand although no plans as of now. Also questions about using the City-Key card as an ID which at present is not okay. 

1:09 Cook County Health - Pamela Cassara, CFO, and staff
Highlights:

• CCH is presently in a favorable financial position
• 25% of the ARPA funds that CCH were allocated have been distributed and are on track to have all the funds allocated by the end of the year
• Comm. Trevor asked if CCH had the capacity to take on new patients with the present staffing shortages. Hiring is a top priority with nursing at the top of the list.
• Reproductive Health Issues - At Stroger the nursery is being removed so that they can increase capacity since newborns are now in the rooms with their moms and the nursery is no longer needed. 
• Migrant Health Services - fluctuating need as the numbers change. Can ramp up rapidly if necessary. Are providing health assessments and immunizations. 
• New outpatient facility will be opening in Bronzeville that will include Behavioral Health services.
• Comm. Stamps asked about the marketing of CCH services so that the communities know about where clinics are and what services are available. Stated that some facilities need to be upgraded (Austin Clinic). Also asked about relationship with nursing programs and asked why there was not a “direct hire” program with local high schools and colleges. CCH indicated that there is is a strong connection with the Malcolm X College nursing program. 
• Touted “My Birthday Health Program” that promotes early detection screenings for prostate and breast cancer.

3:31pm - Board of Review - Commissioners Steele, Rogers, and Cardenas
Highlights:

• 2023 Tax bills went out on time this year
• IT has been upgraded and a patch to the mainframe is no longer needed.
• Processed 246,000 appeals (some include multiple pin numbers) with a 46.9% decrease in their assessment.
• 45,000 PTAB cases covered
• Have open positions and recruiting is a challenge - hiring process is a long process.
• Comm. Cardenas emphasized that the mission of Board of Review is to correct assessments - focus primarily on residential properties - not their fault that taxes are increasing.
• Comm. Degnan wanted to know about having separate budgets for each of the Commissioners office which led to confusing discussion of how the BOR allocates their finances and other resources. Per the Budget Director in 2025 budgets will be separated for non-personnel budgets. 
• Comm. Anaya asked about the outreach process to let people know that there is an appeal process and how to do it. BOR says they are doing outreach and asked the CC Commissioners to help with the outreach. 
• Dispute over the assessing, appeal and tax process is ongoing and not new. President’s office is doing a study to determine the best process according to Comm. Steele. 
• A lot of concern expressed over the amount of OT and what that does relate to. Is it the type of work or the number of appeals or something else. Comm. Britton said they need to know so that they can allocate resources appropriately. 
• Comm. Britton also wants to know why there is such a discrepancy in the number of appeals that come from various areas in Cook County - stated that he sees this as an equity issue. Further expressed desire that all involved (Assessor, BOR, and anyone else necessary) get together and work out all these data, communication, equipment etc. issues that seem to be causing a lot of contention. 
• Comm. Kevin Morrison reviewed all BOR minutes for past few years and asked that the BOR commissioners figure out how to get along. 
• There is now a process for pre-filing an appeal so appeals can now be filed anytime and anywhere in Cook County. Comm. Stamps asked for clarification and how this is being communicated to the residents of Cook County. BOR says they don’t have a communications budget so the efforts are minimal.
• Comm. Rogers says there have to be concerted efforts to get the numbers right in the beginning so there is less need to appeal. Comm. Steele said the appeal rate in Cook County is 33%.

Observer: Cynthia Schilsky

Cook County Board Finance Committee Mid-Year Budget Hearing
July 29, 2024

Bureau of Finance Overview

• A bond ratings upgrade for the County was announced for the third time in 3 years. 
• Total FY 2024 budget is $9.26 B. 
• The FY 2024 the General Fund is expected to end the year with a $142M net favorable variance.
• For the preliminary look for FY 2025, the projected budget gap is currently $218M.  That gap will be eliminated by the time the President submits the proposed Executive Budget in October. 
• For the Health Enterprise Fund, a $224.6M positive variance at the end of this fiscal year is expected due to higher County Care enrollment membership, patient fees, improved collection strategies and increased patient volume. Patient fee revenue increased by $22M due to increased Medicare reimbursement rates and improved follow-up on payment rejections. The 2025 budget  forecast is balanced. Membership in CountyCare is expected to stabilize.
• Cook County Deputy Chief Financial Officer  Dean Constantinou noted a $1.18M increase in sales tax revenue (1.8%). Rising interest rates allows investment income to be 20% above expected and are projected to stabilize for 2025.  After 2025, expenses are expected to grow higher than revenues. In response to a question about mitigating the results of investments that are variable, Constantinou stated that they do revenue forecasting and look for alternative investment revenue, and that it would make sense to look at less sensitive investments.
• Cook County received $1B in community outreach and recovery funds from the federal ARPA. CFO Tanya Anthony reported 74% have been obligated to date with 34% of those expended. Anthony stated they are working  to ensure all monies are obligated by the end of the year which is the federal deadline.. Anthony also stated they have capacity to make changes if plans are not working.  If deadlines or benchmarks for obligations are not being met, the County contacts programs to determine what is to happen, what contingency plans exist, and what controls already have been approved to put more money if need is indicated. In response to a question from Com. Anaya, CFO Anthony stated they feel comfortable with the support received from the hired consultant to help administer the ARPA grants.
• Anthony provided a review of the AARPA Fiscal Sustainability Framework to continue projects into the future; its components are policy alignment, fiscal sustainability (long term), program evaluations, and community engagement.  A sustainability model has been developed to continue funding selected programs after 2026 when the ARPA monies run out. Com Lowry asked how funding would be secured for programs. Part of the answer is that grant optimization research is being done. It is expected that some projects will be absorbed into the County budget. The County has already begun putting excess dollars from prior years into a special fund to help continue some projects.Com. Daley stated several times that Commissioners need to remember funding requests will be coming to them in the future. In response to a question about what proposed programs could not be funded, CFO Anthony stated the focus is on what can be sustained, proceeding with that.

Lynetta Haynes Turner, Office of President, Chief of Staff 

• Haynes-Turner stated FY 2024 continues the road to economic recovery, the budget has a manageable deficit, and was done without increasing residential property taxes.
• The challenge for the Bureau of Human Resources to fill vacancies continues and is reflective of the situation nationwide, but there is progress with filling openings in Cook County. 
• She stated $382M in medical debt was eliminated, impacting 220,000 Cook County residents in County Care. She also stated a centralized data system was being developed for property tax information to be shared across all county agencies; it is on track for all participating offices to be off the main frame and on this system by end of 2024. Regarding questions on property taxes, Turner stated Commissioners were welcome to ask many stakeholders to help address the many issues around them.  Com Daley stated leaders in Springfield must come together on this. 

Commissioners Question for Offices of the President

• A frequent question from various Commissioners concerned the hiring process—how many vacancies were there, how long is the hiring cycle.   The departments and Offices reported that their vacancies have reduced over the year.
• Commissioner Degnen recommended that the Office of Innovation hire at least 3 trained Industrial Engineers to address process improvement.  She believes their specific training would be helpful. The department use to have 3 and now only has 1.   Lynetta Haynes Turner said that the departments keep many metrics that they don’t report to the dashboard.  
• Commissioner Degnen asked the Bureau of Technology what the status was for the Tyler installation.   They are behind.  They hoped to be testing end to end but are still testing in each department separately.  They still hope to test end to end by the end of this fiscal year.   The testing does not include BOR.   They will continue to use an interface.
• Commissioner Gainer asked the Finance bureau to put together a dashboard that would consolidate revenue and expenses, that would be helpful to the Commissioners to know the financial status of the County.
• Commissioner Lowry addressed the continuation of some ARPA projects such as Guaranteed Income which he sees as being very beneficial.   The University of Chicago is conducting a study of that program to   track its benefits.
• Commissioner Gordon asked how is the Finance office monitoring “non-profit gang banging”-when groups get money but then don’t provide any accounting of their efforts. There are  grant monitoring teams.  The Office also tries  to have all the grantees work together in a community and hold each other accountable.   
• Comm. Gordon also questioned the Transportation Department about the large deficit the regions public transit agencies have.  Sis Killian said that President Preckwinkle believes an integrated system would be best and they are looking at various coordination options.
• Commissioner Quezada asked the Technology Department how they are preparing for AI.  There are working groups addressing how it can be used in operations and how private data can be protected.

Office of the Public Administration

• No discussion

Cook County Assessor
     The conversation focused on how property taxes could be reduced in Cook County and what help could be given home owners.  Assessor Kaegi’s office is providing information to various agencies and groups and to individual residents about the eligibility for various exemptions and how to apply. His office sends a list to Commissioners of people in their district that are eligible for exemptions but have not applied.   He is working with the State to make the senior freeze auto renew.   He cautioned that the expansion of exemptions pushes the tax burden onto other residents.
He has three proposals to help people pay their   property tax.  All require action by the State Legislature.

1. Illinois should fund again the  Circuit Breaker program. It would provide grants to eligible seniors and persons with disabilities to help them reduce the costs of property taxes, license plate renewals and rides on public transit.  The State stopped funding the program in 2013.
2. The State should streamline the process for the homeowner exemption.
3. TIF regulations should be changed to allow TIF excess funds to go to home owners for tax relief.

Commissioner Degnen said Cook County should be looking at ways to decrease expenses in general and decrease the dependency on property taxes to fund government.
Commissioner Quezada said that a third party should be hired to examine who is accurate in their valuations—the Assessor or the Board of Review. Mr. Kaegi said that such a contract is currently going through the procurement process.  It would hire the International Association of Assessment Officers to evaluate the last 4 years.

Land Bank Authority

• The Commissioners were complementary of the Office.   It has  brought in 500 developers to build in underserved areas.

Clerk of the Circuit Court

• Commissioner Aguilar asked about the complaints that there are not enough court clerks and that impedes trials.   The Clerk has instituted new personnel policies that collapse titles and cross train clerks so that they can service different courts.  They also have improved hiring and have 530 court clerks for 357 court rooms.

Observers - Carolyn Cosentino and Kathi Graffam

Cook County Board Finance Committee Departmental Budget Hearings
October 25, 2023  - morning session

​Clerk Of The Court—Iris Martinez
2024 Total:  $135,144,132                          2023:  $127,821,336
2024 FTEs:  1,429                                        2023:  1,509

​Following are some key items from this meeting:

• there is a reduction in staffing even though 200 new employees were hired
• following requirements of Shakman decree and are out from court supervision
• evictions, expungements, and victims of violence categories are all up in workload
• Odyssey technology program which allows easier access to information by users, more efficiency was completed in August 2023
• customer service center is very “efficient” and took more than 106,000 calls since June
• developed a domestic violence safe space area for victims to meet with advocates—Markham location for mostly the southern parts of county
• 189 vacancies
• continuances of court cases are tracked, but the coding for why these cases are not completed is very complex.  Pre-trial Fairness Act codes are also being added—will be done in 4-6 weeks
• Commissioners wanted to know reasons for continuances and why technology wasn’t being used by the judges  (input on computers rather than handwritten notes by the judge which can’t always be read clearly, thus mistakes) 

Secretary To The Board—Lynne Turner
2024 TOTAL:  $2,155,000                            2023:  $2,045,000
2024 FTEs:  12                                                    2023:  12

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• 5 positions vacant; only have 7 current employees
• budget increase due to salary increases
• Comm. Degnen wants a legal advisor for the Board and will bring an amendment forward to add this position  (NOTE: this issue was brought up years ago and then never followed up on)
• new Board room will be ready Dec., 2024 with ADA compliance, language translation services, all new equipment
• two improvements are use of QRC code to access agendas (less paper) and closed caption on screens by the end of 2023

Sheriff—Tom Dart
2024 Total:  $708,458,429                                 2023: $674,966,716
2024 FTEs:  5,744   (a decrease)                      2023:  5,839 

Following are some key items from this meeting:   

• budget increases due to parental leave, salary increases, overtime, COLA
• Sheriff office still policing or aiding several towns and parts of Chicago—full time in Ford Hts. and Austin neighborhood
• in River North of Chicago—retail theft work, 
• 1,000 guns taken off the street, go after revocations of Firearm Owner Identification Cards (“FOIDs”)  but doesn’t have the staff (only 8) to do this completely (38,000 revoked FOIDs in Cook County with 30,000 not in compliance)
• working with FBI on carjackings and car stealing which is the worst in the country; only 20% of carjackers are arrested and 60% of those are juveniles; many repeat offenders
• Sheriff has developed many special programs to help detainees with mental, drug and behavioral issues; job help, etc.
• jail programming is high but if defendants are released, there is no service for them; those on electronic monitoring also don’t get these services
• currently 4,860 detainees in jail and 1,800 on Electronic Monitoring (“EM”)
• state law requires EM defendants to have 2 days per week unmonitored.  5% of EM people (166 this year) commit additional crimes on these unsupervised days;  0% on fully monitored days
• has difficulty filling correctional worker positions; has full staffing (35-40) of social workers
• every commissioner who spoke praised Sheriff for his programs and advancements that are one-of-a-kind in the country
• Sheriff is also concerned about the delays in trials, causes problems in the jail too.  It is up to the judiciary to fix this.

Karin Hribar, Observer

Cook County Board Finance Committee meetings with:

• Cook County State’s Attorney
• Cook County Board of Review
• Cook County Treasurer
• Chicago Board of Elections
• Cook County Land Bank
• Cook County Veterans Commission

October 26, 2023

Cook County State’s Attorney (Kimberly Foxx)
Proposed 2024 Expenditures:    $292.7 M    2023:  $195.1 M
   General Funds:                                          $132.9 M    2023:  $127.8 M
   Special Purpose Funds:                          $  26.1 M    2023:  $  23.2 M
   Restricted (Grants):                                  $  43.8 M    2023:  $  44.2 M
2024 Total FTEs:                             1,441.0    2023:  1,470.0
   General Funds:                                             1,244.2    2023:  1,244.0
   Special Purpose Funds:                                 39.0    2023:       43.0
   Restricted (Grants):                                         157.8    2023:     183.6

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• State’s Attorney (“SA”) Foxx reported on the experience since “no cash bail” was implemented in September:  650 requests for detention have been requested and 60% have been granted by judges at detention hearings (mainly for charged crimes of domestic battery, murder, attempted murder, and vehicular hijacking); and the jail population for those charged with non-violent crimes has been reduced by 20%.
• While SA Foxx would welcome more attorney positions, she stressed what would be more useful are more support staff – The standard would be twice the number of attorneys, but rather than having the 1600 support positions that the standard calls for, under the 2024 budget, there will be 350 (up from 300 in 2023).  She said that attorneys are spending time doing tasks that support staff would do – including making copies.  Thus, adding more support staff would increase the productivity of the attorneys and help with retention.
• SA Foxx also reported that 240 wrongful convictions have been vacated.

Cook County Board of Review (George A. Cardenas, Samantha Steele, Larry R. Rogers, Jr.)
Proposed 2024 Expenditures:    $20.1 M    2023:  $18.0 M
   General Funds:                                        $19.6 M     2023:  $18.0 M
   Special Purpose Funds:                       $  0.5 M     2023:  $  0 
2024 Total FTEs:                              163      2023:  157
   General Funds:                                            163        2023:  157

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• Looking at the numbers above, the Board of Review (“BOR”) has 6 new positions, but it was said that there are 8 new FTEs:  6 analysts (split between District 1 and 2 Commissioners, who have fewer analysts than District 3) and 2 tech people.  The BOR wanted 38 new positions.  Currently, the BOR is requesting that the budget be amended to add 5 more:  3 analysts to deal with appeals at the Property Tax Appeals Board (where all the governments which receive property tax funds have exposure of up to $500 M should those appeals be granted), plus a Director of Communications and a Manager of Operations & Purchases.  The BOR is also seeking $100,000 more for non-personnel expenses.  The BOR said that the standard is to have 1 analyst per 2,000 parcels; at the BOR there are 38-40 analysts working 400,000 parcels.
• Comm Degnen said that the rate of appeals from assessments is 5% nationally, but Cook County is an outlier with 30% of the initial assessments appealed.  BOR Comm. Steele said that for many years people in Cook County have been told they should appeal and changing that culture is difficult.  Appeals can be done at the Assessor level first, and then at the BOR.  In response to a question from Comm. Anaya, 44% of the residential appeals at the BOR resulted in reductions totaling $468 M, and 30% of the commercial appeals totaling $5.6 B.  
• Comm. Degnen also raised the issue that the Assessor and BOR use different criteria for assessing commercial properties.  Comm. Steele said that the Assessor looks at the value should the property be sold, while the BOR also looks at the actual expenses and vacancies at those properties, which means the BOR uses a “loaded CAP rate” that the Assessor does not.  That is one of the issues being discussed by President Preckwinkle’s task force on the property tax system.
• Comm. Steele said that the District 2 analysts are using a program to do an initial review that is currently not being used by the other two districts.  District 2 also has implemented standardized procedures for analyzing appeals.  Comm. Britton encouraged all to take as much subjectivity out of the appeals process as possible.  
• Comm. Degnen called on the BOR to present separate budgets in the future:  one for each district plus a 4th one to cover costs that pertain to the BOR as a whole.  This would be similar to what the County Board has, with separate budgets for each Commissioner.

Cook County Treasurer (Maria Pappas)
Proposed 2024 Expenditures:    $15.5 M    2023:  $13.5 M
   General Funds:                                      $   0.7 M    2023:  $  0.7 M
   Special Purpose Funds:                        $14.8 M    2023:  $12.8 M
2024 Total FTEs:                            76.0       2023:  75.5
  General Funds:                                            6.0        2023:    7.0
  Special Purpose Funds:                         70.0        2023:  68.5

Following are some key items from the meeting:

• Treasurer Pappas said that in 1988, office had 250 employees and if same number today, budget would have been $59.6 M.  Instead, today have 59 filled positions and budget is $15.5 M, with 95% of that funded by commercial user fees (in the Special Purpose Funds). 
• Web site getting 5.7 M page visits through Oct. 1 of this year.  Can see from the site that there are $84 M of duplicate and overpayment refunds that taxpayers can apply for online.  Also, about 30,000 seniors could save $34 M if apply for exemptions, which can be done through a link on web page.  Web site can be used through 133 different languages. www.cookcountytreasurer.com. 
• Treasurer Pappas says she led reforms that slashes interest rates on late property tax payments from 18% to 9% per year; that closes loopholes that have allowed tax buyers to reduce governments tax receipts by $40 M each year; and that provides new tools to get chronically tax delinquent properties to new entities so the properties may be more quickly put back to use.
• Treasurer Pappas also touted the studies that have been done by her staff, as well as the new Artificial Intelligence group that she is in the process of creating.  She has tasked the AI group to enhance the phone system for use in 120 languages to obtain tax history of properties for 20 years. 

Chicago Board of Elections (“BOE”) (Charles Holiday, Jr., Executive Director)
Proposed 2024 Expenditures:    $26.4 M    2023:  $ 1.7 M  (all Election Fund)
2024 Total FTEs:                              4.0        2023:  4.0
   
Note:  The Chicago Board of Elections runs elections in the City of Chicago, while the Cook County Clerk is responsible for elections in suburban Cook County.  A portion of the funding for the Board of Elections is paid for by the City of Chicago, including the cost of all but 4 of the employees of the Board.  Cook County pays the costs of the 3 Election Board Commissioners and the Executive Director each year.  A much greater amount is allocated by Cook County to the Board of Elections during even years to cover a little less than half of the costs of the Primary and General elections. The proposed 2024 budget at the City for the Board is an additional $34.5 M.

• BOE has purchased new e-poll books for the 2024 elections to check voters in.  BOE is working on recruiting and training election workers, and making plans to handle the expected increase in voters utilizing early voting and vote-by-mail options.  Currently, there are 130,000 signed up for the permanent vote-by-mail registry, and many more are expected to sign up in 2024.
• Comm. Britton asked if BOE and County Clerk have come up with a single web page location where voters could go to see combined totals for both Chicago and Suburban Cook where districts overlap.  The answer is no, not yet. 
• Comm. Degnen said that the early voting site in her district had long lines the last few days of Early Voting and asked if more sites could be added so people would not be discouraged from voting.  Mr. Holiday said that would entail additional money, which the City Council was not willing to provide.  However, he stressed that people can go to any Early Voting site to vote.  

Land Bank Authority (Jessica Caffrey)
Proposed 2024 Expenditures:    $  7.0 M   2023:  $5.4 M
   Special Purpose Funds:                         $  6.3 M    2023:  $5.0 M
   Restricted (Grants)                                  $  0.7 M    2023:  $0.4 M
2024 Total FTEs:                               18       2023:  15
   Special Purpose Funds:                               18        2023:      15

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• Ms. Caffrey said that this agency is the largest of this type in the country based on geography.  Over the last 10 years, 1,700 vacant properties have been put back on tax rolls, $20.8 M unpaid taxes have been recovered, and $186 M have been added to community wealth – looking at the value when the properties were sold to the Land Bank vs. the value when the Land Bank sold.
• The goals are to (1) grow home ownership, (2) build community wealth, (3) acquire vacant properties, and (4) reduce its “aged” inventory (held more than 2 years) by 15%.  Said that 2023 was the first year that more properties were sold (594) than acquired (441).

Veterans Assistance Commission (Agency Head, Maj. Deanna Love, USA, ret.)
Proposed 2024 Expenditures:  $1.14 M  (all General Funds)
2024 Total FTEs:  11.0
This Commission was reorganized as a result of a new state law and related County ordinance, which is why no information for 2023 is provided.

• Said proposed budget will allow staff to increase from current 4 positions to 11.  Budget also provides money to increase space for this staff to provide service to veterans. Plan to introduce new services to veterans, which will also lead to economic benefits to Cook County as a whole.
• In response to questions from Comm. Lowry and Anaya, said that services are provided for those on a needs-tested basis; incomes must be less than 300% of the poverty level; and must re-apply and qualify each year.
• Commission originally requested 16 more FTEs, with 8 of those dedicated to assisting veterans in applying for Federal assistance. 

Observer:  Priscilla Mims

Cook County Board Finance Committee
Departmental Budget Hearings
Oct. 24, 2023

Finance Committee meetings with  

• Budget Overview
• Offices under the President
• Cook County Health
• Office of the Public Administration

Budget Overview (Tanya Anthony, Kanako Ishida Musselwhite, Dean Constantinou)

​Proposed 2024 Expenditures:    $9.14 B        2023:  $8.79 B
   Healthcare:                                              $4.37 B        2023:  $4.1  B
   Public Safety:                                          $1.56 B        2023:  $1.5  B
   Finance & Admin.                              $   958 M        2023:  $   862 M
   Capital Projects:                                 $   756 M        2023:  $   723 M
   Annuity & Benefits:                            $   439 M        2023:  $   513 M
   Debt Payments:                                   $   312 M        2023:  $   305 M
   Economic Development                  $   296 M        2023:  $   328 M
   Fixed Charges & Other:                    $   294 M        2023:  $   270 M
   Property & Taxation:                           $   144 M        2023:  $   132 M

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• Total budget recommendation: increase of 342M (4%) 
• FTE will decrease by sunset-ing 414 positions (no layoffs)
• Special Purpose Funds: recommends a $264M increase in ARPA spending to continue key initiatives; will create a separate ARPA Program Sustainability Reserve (not using ARPA funds) to extend some programs beyond 2026; Opioid Remediation and Abatement Fund (ORAF) has recovered $10.5M (in 1st of 15 years) from national settlements; will spend ARPA funds first, then settlements
• General Fund revenues are projected to increase by 6%. General Fund is sensitive to political and economic factors; creating reserves and more diverse revenue sources to manage budget in the event of a downturn; employing Moody’s Analytics to create forecast scenarios
• Pension Fund   should be at 100% beyond 2044    
• Contract compliance budget going up 25% due to community outreach to increase small business licenses
• Inflation Reduction Act: many environmental funding programs will publish grants applied for in monthly updates; will have a grants management unit by end of 1Q24 in the Offices Under the President (OUP)
• County is using excess reserves pursuant to policy to transfer into the following funds: Equity fund $70M; infrastructure and equipment fund $9.1M; ARPA Sustainability Reserve $1.66M

Offices under the President (Lanetta Haynes Turner, Chief of Staff)

2024 Total: $2.18 B        2023:  $2.10 B   
The Offices are the Bureaus of Administration, Finance, Human Resources, Technology, Economic Development, and Asset Management; Departments of Administrative Hearings and Human Rights & Ethics; Justice Advisory Council; and Office of the County Auditor

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• Ambitious budget: 13.6% of total Gen Fund Budget, including 21 new FTE
• ARPA budget is >$235M, including $74M for Behavioral Health, care for new arrivals, $44M for mental health, guaranteed income program, small business grants (new in 2024, $10k or $20k /grant), support for the pretrial Fairness Act, $110M for community-based violence prevention, and $5M supporting domestic violence prevention grants
• The Equity Fund is a special purpose fund that provides grants for initiatives including access to digital technology and sustainability of programs currently funded by ARPA 
• Justice Advisory Council: 100% increase (from $1.4 M to $2.9 M) in budget as grant monitors and analysts are hired to ensure small business grant compliance and federal reporting requirements for ARPA programs
• County is ~ 80% unionized; current collective bargaining agreements will terminate in 2025
• Property tax system will be overhauled over time; UIC and CMAP will be providing data for analysis

Cook County Health (Israel Rocha, Jr., Pam Cassera)

2024 Total:           $4.38 B        2023:  $4.12 B
   Health Enterprise:    $4.25 B        2023:  $3.99 B
   Special Purpose:      $0.05 B        2023:  $0.06 B
   Restricted (Grants)    $0.07 B        2023:  $0.06 B
2024 Total FTEs:    7,682            2023:  7,988
   Health Enterprise:    7,326            2023:  7,634
   Special Purpose:          176            2023:     115
   Restricted (Grants)       180            2023:     239

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• Recommended budget represents a 6.6% increase; 66% of the increase is for contract services and personnel services
• Many positive results are happening in the CCH system, especially in patient services, e.g., cardiovascular care, imaging, full spectrum of pediatric specialty services (partnering with UIC)
• Change Institute ($125M) investing in nephrology testing and cardiac procedures to increase organ transplant eligibility, save lives, and reduce the disparity in life expectancy for underserved populations
• Very strong year: have hired >1000 employees in 2023, eliminating 308 unfilled positions in 2024 (2000 funded CCH vacancies in total in 2023); Chief Recruiting Officer is being hired to build a sustainable pipeline of applicants through programs with and hiring fairs; offer comprehensive tuition reimbursement program through graduate or medical education
• $200M (20% of total staffing) is for registry services to meet the needs of current FTEs (e.g., those employees out due to Family Medical Leave Act), make up staff deficits, and hasten onboarding of long term employees; several Commissioners voiced concern about continued reliance on agency staff
• Budget risks: prescriptions filled and cost, Medicaid remediation, nursing and clinical staff salary increases
• Uncompensated care: 2023 forecasted a 30% increase but have seen 20% increase; offering assistance with the Medicare reenrollment application process
• Building medical, surgical, and nursing services for reproductive health, family planning, and abortion access going forward: have used agency services to ensure that patients’ needs are met.
• Level 2 trauma center funding or reallocation of funds is needed on the south side
• Mental health treatment capacity is not meeting the need. Resources from every level of government are needed. Conducting campaigns to get people to come in are ongoing while we build capacity.
• Need to coordinate public awareness about Arlington Heights care facility through open houses and presentations

Office of the Public Administrator (Louis G. Apostol)
2024 Total:        $1.72 M        2023:  $1.7 M
2024 Total FTEs:    15            2023:  15

Following are some key items from this meeting:

• The PA’s Office is a zero-based budget (start from $0 and build); annual revenues far exceed its budget appropriation; proposed budget increase is 8.6%.
• The office operates entirely from funds it generates through statutory mandate and not from tax revenue. Funds are generated from estates of decedents who leave no will, or those named as executor and are incapable of serving, unavailable or disqualified. 

Observer:  Susan Gregory