The Local Pension Dashboard is intended for use as a resource and educational tool to increase the accessibility of local pension fund data. The dashboard reports metrics for the ten major local pension funds within the City of Chicago and Cook County, Illinois, with data from 1996 to 2024 (2024 CTA data is not included as that data has not been released as of publication). Using this tool,…
On September 17, 2025, Civic Federation President Joe Ferguson testified before the Cook County Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee in support of a resolution calling for an assessment and reform of mosquito abatement services in suburban Cook County. He emphasized that mosquito abatement is a vital public health function but is currently delivered through a fragmented and…
The Cook County Office of the Independent Inspector General’s July 2025 report reveals ongoing ethical and administrative failures at the South Cook County Mosquito Abatement District (SCCMAD), including trustees serving beyond expired terms, improper payments disguised as travel reimbursements, and limited transparency. While the County Board has accepted recommendations for corrective action,…
Property taxes are the primary revenue source for Illinois local governments, funding schools, pensions, and essential services. Maintaining strong property tax collection rates—typically above 95%—is critical for community stability and fiscal health. This report's findings underscore deep structural inequities in Illinois’ reliance on property taxes to fund local services. Without intervention…
This report explains the system and method for how property taxes are levied, calculated and collected in Cook County, Illinois. This is called the tax extension and billing process. Additional Civic Federation primers will explain the Cook County assessment, property tax appeals and tax increment financing (TIF) systems.The purpose of this report is to make the property tax system more…
This report examines the hidden complexity behind Illinois’ roadways, revealing how fragmented jurisdictional responsibilities—split among municipalities, counties, townships, and the state—create inefficiencies, higher costs, and uneven service. Using Glenview as a case study, the analysis highlights how overlapping control leads to inconsistent maintenance and coordination challenges. Drawing…
This short report explores how road conditions across Cook County reflect stark disparities in infrastructure quality, fiscal capacity, and jurisdictional responsibility. Drawing on state pavement data, the report finds that while toll roads and roads in the North and South regions generally fare better, the West region and parts of Chicago face significantly worse conditions. The prevalence of “…
Green Bay Road, a vital north-south corridor through Lake and Cook Counties, is maintained by ten different jurisdictions, including the State of Illinois and nine municipalities. This fragmented structure leads to inconsistent planning, uneven road conditions, and disjointed infrastructure projects. While local control was intended to foster responsive governance, the result is a patchwork of…
Mosquito abatement districts (MAD) in Illinois utilize integrated pest management strategies to control mosquito populations and prevent diseases from mosquito-borne viruses such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue, filariasis, encephalitis, and West Nile virus.Mosquito abatement services can be delivered by special district governments, municipal or county public health programs, public works…
CHICAGO – Illinois is home to nearly 9,000 local governments—more than any other state. This sprawling, and at times overlapping, patchwork of governance jurisdictions has long fueled redundancies and inefficiencies, resulting in transparency and accountability deficits. In stark contrast, many other states deliver vital public services through far leaner government structures. A prime example of…
