The Chicago City Council on Wednesday fell one vote shy of overriding Mayor Brandon Johnson's veto of an ordinance that would have required a higher threshold for the city to borrow money, in an effort to make it more difficult to add to the city's massive pile of debt.
The measure would raise the threshold for taking on debt from a simple 26-vote majority to a 30-vote supermajority of the City Council. Alders approved the measure last month by a 32-15 vote, but Johnson vetoed the ordinance last week.
The City Council voted 33-17 on Wednesday to override Johnson's veto, one vote shy of the 34 required to do so.
Ald. Jason Ervin (28th), the mayor's City Council floor leader, argued that the proposal would have diluted the power of Black and Latino alderpeople, and allowed a minority of the City Council to "hold the key to how the city can invest in itself."
"For as long as I can remember, 26 votes ruled the day in this body. That's how democracy works. You win with the majority, and you move on," Ervin said.
Opponents of the measure said, while they want the city to rely less on borrowing money, the bid to raise the threshold for doing so was aimed more at weakening Johnson ahead of the upcoming election than fixing the city's debt problems.
"This is not going to be better governance. This is not going to fix your issue. You know, unless you're just trying to give the mayor a black eye, this is pretty unnecessary. We could actually fix this in a different way," said Ald. Maria Hadden (48th).
However, supporters of the ordinance said it would have made the City Council more independent of the mayor, and required the mayor to be more collaborative with alderpeople when seeking to borrow money.
With debt payments and employee pension obligations making up approximately 40% of the city's annual operating budget, supporters of the higher threshold for borrowing argued it was necessary to improve the city's fiscal discipline.
"In order to become a truly independent council, we have to change the rules," said Ald. Marty Quinn, who led the effort to raise the threshold for taking on more city debt. "The ordinance before us today forces the mayor, whoever that mayor may be, to find four more votes on city debt issues. That's it."
Quinn noted the Illinois General Assembly already requires a three-fifths majority vote by both the House and Senate to pass all debt-related legislation.
However, after last month's City Council vote, Johnson argued raising the threshold for borrowing is not "a useful way to grow our economy."
"The last thing that people want is government to get in the way of itself," he said. "There are definitely major concerns there, you know, and I will address it accordingly."
Johnson argued that issuing bonds is a necessary tool to boost economic development and affordable housing in long neglected neighborhoods on the South and West sides. He echoed that argument in a letter accompanying his veto.
"Neighborhoods with the greatest infrastructure needs should not face additional barriers to securing essential public investment," Johnson wrote in a letter accompanying his veto. "Delaying infrastructure projects can increase construction costs, worsen deterioration, and ultimately cost taxpayers more. While this ordinance increases a voting threshold, it does not put into place any additional measures around debt affordability, reporting requirements, or financial oversight."
Ald. Bill Conway (34th), an investment banker, argued that the Johnson administration has left borrowing power authorized by the City Council last year languish for months before actually issuing bonds. He noted the City Council authorized $1.8 billion in bonds for capital infrastructure improvements last December, but City Hall only recently started issuing those bonds.
"The notion that requiring 30 votes instead of 26 will somehow delay infrastructure investment simply doesn't square with the facts. If there is any delay in this area, it is with the executive branch, certainly not City Council," Conway said.
Meantime, the City Council unanimously approved a massive $261 million settlement over multiple wrongful conviction cases, the largest police misconduct deal in Chicago history.
The eye-popping settlement would resolve 16 lawsuits filed by 17 men who say they were framed for murder by notorious former Chicago Police Detective Reynaldo Guevara.
City attorneys said all but two of the men have received certificates of innocence. Of the two who have not, one has applied for one, but a judge has yet to rule on the request, and the other has not yet sought a certificate of innocence.
The massive payout is only part of the growing costs related to Guevara, who has been linked to dozens of wrongful convictions.
Beyond the 17 men whose cases are being settled under the deal, Deputy Corporation Counsel Jessica Felker told aldermen there are still two more Guevara-related lawsuits in settlement talks, with 23 other Guevara lawsuits still pending which will likely end up being settled.
Nine other men are challenging convictions in cases Guevara handled, but have yet to sue the city.
Those cases likely will cost the city hundreds of millions of dollars more.
City attorneys told aldermen if Guevara's victims each pursued their own lawsuits and took the cases to trial, unpredictable juries could expose taxpayers to even higher costs.
In the cases being settled under the $261 million deal approved on Wednesday, city attorneys estimated the move would save taxpayers between $300 million and $400 million compared to the risk of taking the cases to trial.
The settlement would be paid in two installments in 2027 and 2028.
The City Council also is expected to approve a resolution opposing Amtrak's plan to move its maintenance facility from the South Loop to Bridgeport near Rate Field.
The resolution calls on Amtrak to pause plans for a $900 million Midwest maintenance facility until environmental studies are made public and a public hearing takes place.
Ald. Nicole Lee (11th), whose ward includes Bridgeport, has said the chosen site is too close to existing homes.
"Where it is now is totally industrial. Within 500 yards of that yard where they sit now, 26 people live. Within 500 feet of this yard where they want to move to, 6,741 [people live]," she said.
Lee has said Amtrak plans on moving forward with the Bridgeport maintenance facility under federal authority than can bypass local zoning, building, and environmental regulations.
While the resolution alders plan to pass on Wednesday does not carry any legal authority to stop the project, local leaders are hoping the vocal opposition from neighbors and elected officials convinces Amtrak to slow down and reconsider the project.
Amtrak has said, while it looked at rebuilding the maintenance yard in its current location or moving elsewhere, it selected the proposed Canal Street site in Bridgeport for its new maintenance yard because of its proximity to Union Station. It was the right size and shape, and ultimately, there was a willing seller.
The project is closely tied to plans for a potential new White Sox stadium in the South Loop.
White Sox minority owner Justin Ishbia's company, Canal Edge, is the private development and delivery partner for the Amtrak project and is providing $125 million in private capital.
A local task force created to address the rising rates of domestic violence and strengthen support for survivors will soon be brought back for a second phase.
Back in July, the Chicago-Cook County Violence Against Women Task Force released a report that identified gaps in the justice system that often failed survivors.
The task force said survivors of abuse and domestic violence are often left to navigate a confusing system where agencies don't share information and, in many cases, don't even collect the same data.
While the task force couldn't access key data, CBS News Chicago did. In 2024, we obtained a decade of Cook County records. Our investigation found only about 25% of protection orders were being served, meaning many survivors never got the protections judges ordered.
Task force members said that investigation helped expose a critical weakness that has since seen improvement.
The development of the report was phase one of the work of the task force. Phase two would work to implement recommendations made in the report.
The City Council Public Safety approved the second phase of the task force last week, and the full City Council gave the measure final approval on Wednesday.
A pilot program that uses cameras on city vehicles and CTA buses to automatically ticket drivers blocking bus and bike lanes downtown will be expanded citywide over the next two years, after a unanimous City Council vote.
The Smart Streets program was first launched in November 2024 in an area bounded by Roosevelt Road, Ashland Avenue, North Avenue, and Lake Michigan. The program allows the city to install cameras on CTA buses, city vehicles, and utility and light poles to catch drivers who park in bike lanes, bus-only lanes, bus stops, and crosswalks.
Tickets for blocking a bus lane cost $90. Tickets for stopping or parking at a bus stop run $100. Blocking a bike lane can result in a $250 fine.
Earlier this year, the pilot area was expanded north to an area bound by Roosevelt Road, Ashland Avenue, Irving Park Road, and Lake Michigan.
On Wednesday, the City Council approved a measure to make the program permanent and expand it citywide in three phases in 2027 and 2028.
City officials and aldermen have said the program is designed to provide more reliable bus service, and eliminate hazards for bicyclists, who are often forced out of bike lanes and into the same lanes as cars and other vehicles when someone blocks a bike lane.
