This Curious City segment on the CTA asks “How many fares does it take for a bus to get to the break even point?” The Civic Federation said the concept of breaking even is not a reasonable expectation for the public agency; rather that the goal should always be reducing the cost of the system in order to attract more riders or expand services.
The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) recently released its FY2016 proposed budget. While the Civic Federation traditionally analyzes features common to all local government budgets, our analyses of the Chicago Transit Authority’s (CTA) budgets include a review of the Authority’s productivity measurement data. The Civic Federation uses expenditures, ridership and miles traveled data provided by the…
The Civic Federation has long supported sensible legislation aimed at improving the efficiency and effectiveness of government operations in Illinois. The purpose of this blog is to summarize briefly consolidation legislation and initiatives that have been proposed since our last update on this topic in September 2014. Local Government Consolidation and Unfunded Mandates Task Force One of…
This segment investigates the costs associated with an abandoned CTA “superstation,” a plan for non-stop airport train service left unfinished underneath Block 37 in the Chicago Loop. The Civic Federation said the expensive, unfinished superstation is a prime example of a project that failed due to inadequate planning and lack of public discussion.
This article discusses a proposal by Governor Bruce Rauner to allow cities, towns and counties in Illinois to file for bankruptcy protection. The Civic Federation’s 2015 Legislative Priorities encourage the Illinois General Assembly to create an Illinois Municipal Protection Authority as an alternative to bankruptcy to assist local governments in finding creative, voluntary solutions to their…
Annexation is the extension of municipal boundaries into adjacent unincorporated areas and the corresponding expansion of city services to those newly incorporated areas. In Illinois, municipal governments have the authority to determine and expand their boundaries, subject to the provisions of the Illinois Municipal Code. In a recent report, the Civic Federation began to identify reasons why…
Cook County’s unincorporated areas account for 125.8 square miles, or 13.1% of the County’s total land area. (Of that land area, 60.26% is located within a forest preserve.) Residents of these areas rely on the County to provide municipal services such as law enforcement, building and zoning, and liquor control at a cost to the County of $37.2 million each year. A recent Civic Federation report…
This article discusses a report released by the Civic Federation that examines selected areas within Cook County that have never been incorporated by a municipality. In these unincorporated areas, which account for approximately 2.4% of Cook County’s total population, the residents rely on the County for municipal services like law enforcement, building and zoning, and liquor control.
In-depth analysis also includes recommendations to facilitate incorporation A report released today by the Civic Federation examines selected areas within Cook County that have never been incorporated by a municipality. The full 208-page report, available here, includes an examination of why these areas have never been incorporated, detailed profiles of selected unincorporated areas, an estimate…
To view a mobile friendly version of this report, click here. This report examines selected areas within Cook County that have never been incorporated by a municipality. Approximately 2.4%, or 126,114, of Cook County’s 5.2 million residents live in unincorporated areas of the County and therefore do not pay taxes to a municipality. This requires County government to provide municipal services,…
