[remote or in person] Committee on Budget and Government Operations

Chicago City Council
Politics
Finance

Tuesday, March 12, 2024
11:00 a.m. — 1:00 p.m. CDT

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121 N LaSalle St Chicago, IL 60602 (Directions)

City Hall, 2nd floor, Council Chambers

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At this link, scroll down to “Meeting Notices.” Look for “Watch now” and click on the link with the meeting title to go to a livestream page.

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Reporting

Edited and summarized by the Chicago - IL Documenters Team

Note-taking by Sofia Delgado

Alders voted to establish a program incentivizing whistleblower reports of illegal dumping, building on a similar pilot program that ended in 2015.

View notes
Live reporting by Eliot Wyeth

Alders voted to establish a program incentivizing whistleblower reports of illegal dumping, building on a similar pilot program that ended in 2015.

Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy
Hello Chicago! Today I'll be live-tweeting the City Council meeting for the Committee on Budget and Government Operations for @CHIdocumenters #CHIdocumenters

10:57 AM Mar 12, 2024 CDT

Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 2/50
This meeting can be attended live at 121 N La Salle St 2nd Fl, City Council Chambers, or online at - just scroll down on the home page to "Meeting Notices" and the link will appear once the meeting has begun
chicityclerk.com
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 3/50
Today's agenda can be found here:
…storagev1.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/meetingattachm…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 4/50
The link to the meeting is now live (), but the meeting has not yet begun
chicityclerk.com/committee-budg…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 5/50
If you would like to learn more about the Budget Committee members, Chicago Councilmatic is always a great resource:
chicago.councilmatic.org/committee/comm…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 6/50
Meeting is live.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 7/50
17 members present, for a quorum.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 8/50
Alds Rodriguez, Scott, Rodriguez-Sanchez, Ramirez-Rosa, Mitts are joining remotely.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 9/50
Public comment is open and open with George Blakemore. He asks about what Rule 45 is, and asks the council to educate the public about it. He says: "Your allegiance is not to the mayor. You serve the public."
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 10/50
Mr. Blakemore: "You bring out the ugliness in me," he says in response to how the Council is acting in general and how it treats the public.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 11/50
Next is Jessica Jackson. She addresses Ald Vasquez (40), and criticizes his involvement in "black business", and says he should "mind his Hispanic alderman business".
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 12/50
To learn more about George Blakemore, "The Concerned Citizen", see this article in the Chicago Reader:
people.chicagoreader.com/who/george-bla…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 13/50
The next speaker is Tywon Sims: he asks about hiring preferences, and what hiring preferences are going to be. He expresses concern about what is being done for the Black citizens of Chicago. "Everyone wants to push the narrative that [the city] is going to ****...."
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 14/50
Mr. Sims: "...That's not the narrative." He expresses hope for the City and specifically the Black community.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 15/50
Public comment is closed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 16/50
Monthly Rule 45 Report for Feb is approved.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 17/50
Next is Item 2, approval for the appropriation of Funds within Fund 925.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 18/50
They are proposing allotment of approx $4.1m of Covid19 funds for epidemiology projects.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 19/50
This allocation will go in part to infectious disease laboratories; currently there is one sequencing laboratory at Rush, and one laboratory at IDPH for tracing and diagnostics.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 20/50
Motion approved.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 21/50
Next item is regarding the appointment of Julie Hernandez-Tomlin as Commissioner of Department of Fleet and Facility Management.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 22/50
Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin has over 34 years of experience in Chicago government.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 23/50
Ald Napolitano (41) enthusiastically endorses Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 24/50
Ald Cardona (31) says he is glad she is returning to this role which was eliminated and then reinstated.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 25/50
Ald Sposato: "Great to see you back."
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 26/50
Ald Dowell (3): "I'd like to add my voice to the chorus of people welcoming you back." She asks about her priorities. Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin wants to make sure the fleets are being maintained and repaired in a timely fashion.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 27/50
She also wishes to improve the fleet's environmental impact and make sure all are compliant with the ADA.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 28/50
Ald Dowell also requests Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin look into the prices of the contracts the city has entered into; some seem "exorbitant". She says she will.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 29/50
Ald Burnett (27) asks about the environment checks on the sales of lots. Is it true that there is only one person can approve these checks? There is a shortage of staff, and they plan on posting vacancies to fill next quarter.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 30/50
Ald Burnett thanks her for looking into this issue before she's even been sworn in.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 31/50
Chair Ervin asks about the possibility of employing a short-term solution to these long wait times by using a contracted service.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 32/50
Ald Curtis (18) asks about the Garbage Truck Fleets. He says his constituents comment on them leaking in alleys. He congratulates her.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 33/50
Ald Moore (17) praises her responsiveness when people reach out. He echos Ald Burnett's concerns with the vacant lot issue. He asks about current vacanies. They employ 90% trade positions, and work with 23 unions. There are 33 vacancies for auto machinists.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 34/50
Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin says that one of her first thoughts about filling these trade positions is to reach out to youth. Ald Moore asks about a full list of vacancies w/r/t each trade. She promises to provide a list via the Chair.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 35/50
Ald Moore asks how many police cars are currently down, and what the turnaround time is to get them back up. Mark Chapulis, Dept Commissioner of Fleet Operations, reports that there are 387 of 2553 down, plus 190 down for accidents (which require more time and repair)
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 36/50
Ald Vasquez (40) says he is also happy to see Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin back in this role. He says she is an example of excellent leadership.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 37/50
Ald Manaa-Hoppenworth (48) asks: you left the City's employ and went to private. What are you bringing back? Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin: "I learned that I wanted to come back to the city!" She says it was valuable to see how things operate "on the other side".
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 38/50
Ald Manaa-Hoppenworth requests that the facilities currently being used to house migrants be not only maintained but improved.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 39/50
Motion to accept the appointment; the ayes have it.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 40/50
They are holding on Item 3 and going on to Item 4: establishing a reward program for information leading to the conviction or finding of liability for illegal dumping.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 41/50
This program was previously in place and operated successfully; it just "sunsetted". They are bringing it back with the sole change of it going through the Commissioner of Streets and Sanitation; it previously went through a position that no longer exists.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 42/50
Amendment passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 43/50
Item 5 would require that City Council advice and consent for appointment of the Department of Public Health Commissioner.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 44/50
This is the standard procedure; Ald Lawson (44) says that this seems to be a simple oversight. Amendment passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 45/50
Item 6's sponsor is not present and so is deferred.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 46/50
Item 7 is for the transfer with 4th Ward Wage Allowance/Aldermanic Expense Account for Year 2024. Passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 47/50
Item 8 is for the transfer of funds within the 26th Ward Wage Allowance/Aldermanic Expense Account for Y2024. Passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 48/50
Again, to find exact wordings of these items as well as Ordinance numbers, see today's agenda:
…storagev1.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/meetingattachm…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 49/50
Meeting adjourned at 12:05. Committee adjourned until Wednesday, March 20th, at 9:30AM. This meeting is not (yet) on the city agenda, but the regular City Council meeting is scheduled for that day at 10AM.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 50/50
This concludes today's coverage for the Committee on Budget and Government Operations. For more meeting coverage, check out and @CHIdocumenters. Have a great day!
documenters.org
View thread
Live reporting by Eliot Wyeth

Alders voted to establish a program incentivizing whistleblower reports of illegal dumping, building on a similar pilot program that ended in 2015.

Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy
Hello Chicago! Today I'll be live-tweeting the City Council meeting for the Committee on Budget and Government Operations for @CHIdocumenters #CHIdocumenters

10:57 AM Mar 12, 2024 CDT

Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 2/50
This meeting can be attended live at 121 N La Salle St 2nd Fl, City Council Chambers, or online at - just scroll down on the home page to "Meeting Notices" and the link will appear once the meeting has begun
chicityclerk.com
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 3/50
Today's agenda can be found here:
…storagev1.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/meetingattachm…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 4/50
The link to the meeting is now live (), but the meeting has not yet begun
chicityclerk.com/committee-budg…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 5/50
If you would like to learn more about the Budget Committee members, Chicago Councilmatic is always a great resource:
chicago.councilmatic.org/committee/comm…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 6/50
Meeting is live.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 7/50
17 members present, for a quorum.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 8/50
Alds Rodriguez, Scott, Rodriguez-Sanchez, Ramirez-Rosa, Mitts are joining remotely.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 9/50
Public comment is open and open with George Blakemore. He asks about what Rule 45 is, and asks the council to educate the public about it. He says: "Your allegiance is not to the mayor. You serve the public."
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 10/50
Mr. Blakemore: "You bring out the ugliness in me," he says in response to how the Council is acting in general and how it treats the public.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 11/50
Next is Jessica Jackson. She addresses Ald Vasquez (40), and criticizes his involvement in "black business", and says he should "mind his Hispanic alderman business".
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 12/50
To learn more about George Blakemore, "The Concerned Citizen", see this article in the Chicago Reader:
people.chicagoreader.com/who/george-bla…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 13/50
The next speaker is Tywon Sims: he asks about hiring preferences, and what hiring preferences are going to be. He expresses concern about what is being done for the Black citizens of Chicago. "Everyone wants to push the narrative that [the city] is going to ****...."
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 14/50
Mr. Sims: "...That's not the narrative." He expresses hope for the City and specifically the Black community.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 15/50
Public comment is closed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 16/50
Monthly Rule 45 Report for Feb is approved.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 17/50
Next is Item 2, approval for the appropriation of Funds within Fund 925.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 18/50
They are proposing allotment of approx $4.1m of Covid19 funds for epidemiology projects.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 19/50
This allocation will go in part to infectious disease laboratories; currently there is one sequencing laboratory at Rush, and one laboratory at IDPH for tracing and diagnostics.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 20/50
Motion approved.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 21/50
Next item is regarding the appointment of Julie Hernandez-Tomlin as Commissioner of Department of Fleet and Facility Management.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 22/50
Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin has over 34 years of experience in Chicago government.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 23/50
Ald Napolitano (41) enthusiastically endorses Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 24/50
Ald Cardona (31) says he is glad she is returning to this role which was eliminated and then reinstated.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 25/50
Ald Sposato: "Great to see you back."
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 26/50
Ald Dowell (3): "I'd like to add my voice to the chorus of people welcoming you back." She asks about her priorities. Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin wants to make sure the fleets are being maintained and repaired in a timely fashion.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 27/50
She also wishes to improve the fleet's environmental impact and make sure all are compliant with the ADA.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 28/50
Ald Dowell also requests Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin look into the prices of the contracts the city has entered into; some seem "exorbitant". She says she will.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 29/50
Ald Burnett (27) asks about the environment checks on the sales of lots. Is it true that there is only one person can approve these checks? There is a shortage of staff, and they plan on posting vacancies to fill next quarter.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 30/50
Ald Burnett thanks her for looking into this issue before she's even been sworn in.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 31/50
Chair Ervin asks about the possibility of employing a short-term solution to these long wait times by using a contracted service.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 32/50
Ald Curtis (18) asks about the Garbage Truck Fleets. He says his constituents comment on them leaking in alleys. He congratulates her.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 33/50
Ald Moore (17) praises her responsiveness when people reach out. He echos Ald Burnett's concerns with the vacant lot issue. He asks about current vacanies. They employ 90% trade positions, and work with 23 unions. There are 33 vacancies for auto machinists.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 34/50
Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin says that one of her first thoughts about filling these trade positions is to reach out to youth. Ald Moore asks about a full list of vacancies w/r/t each trade. She promises to provide a list via the Chair.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 35/50
Ald Moore asks how many police cars are currently down, and what the turnaround time is to get them back up. Mark Chapulis, Dept Commissioner of Fleet Operations, reports that there are 387 of 2553 down, plus 190 down for accidents (which require more time and repair)
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 36/50
Ald Vasquez (40) says he is also happy to see Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin back in this role. He says she is an example of excellent leadership.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 37/50
Ald Manaa-Hoppenworth (48) asks: you left the City's employ and went to private. What are you bringing back? Ms. Hernandez-Tomlin: "I learned that I wanted to come back to the city!" She says it was valuable to see how things operate "on the other side".
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 38/50
Ald Manaa-Hoppenworth requests that the facilities currently being used to house migrants be not only maintained but improved.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 39/50
Motion to accept the appointment; the ayes have it.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 40/50
They are holding on Item 3 and going on to Item 4: establishing a reward program for information leading to the conviction or finding of liability for illegal dumping.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 41/50
This program was previously in place and operated successfully; it just "sunsetted". They are bringing it back with the sole change of it going through the Commissioner of Streets and Sanitation; it previously went through a position that no longer exists.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 42/50
Amendment passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 43/50
Item 5 would require that City Council advice and consent for appointment of the Department of Public Health Commissioner.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 44/50
This is the standard procedure; Ald Lawson (44) says that this seems to be a simple oversight. Amendment passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 45/50
Item 6's sponsor is not present and so is deferred.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 46/50
Item 7 is for the transfer with 4th Ward Wage Allowance/Aldermanic Expense Account for Year 2024. Passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 47/50
Item 8 is for the transfer of funds within the 26th Ward Wage Allowance/Aldermanic Expense Account for Y2024. Passed.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 48/50
Again, to find exact wordings of these items as well as Ordinance numbers, see today's agenda:
…storagev1.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/meetingattachm…
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 49/50
Meeting adjourned at 12:05. Committee adjourned until Wednesday, March 20th, at 9:30AM. This meeting is not (yet) on the city agenda, but the regular City Council meeting is scheduled for that day at 10AM.
Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy 50/50
This concludes today's coverage for the Committee on Budget and Government Operations. For more meeting coverage, check out and @CHIdocumenters. Have a great day!
documenters.org
View thread

Attachments

Meeting details
By India Daniels 3/12/2024
Delgado March 12 budget/gov operations
By Sofia Delgado 3/12/2024

Agency Information

Chicago City Council

chicityclerkelms.chicago.gov

(312) 744-3166

@ChiCouncil

See Documenters reporting

The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago and consists of the Mayor and Aldermen elected from each of the City’s fifty wards. Source

If you attend a meeting in person, be prepared to go through a security checkpoint and show photo ID.

Meetings are also livestreamed at https://www.chicityclerk.com/.

At this link, scroll down to “Meeting Notices.” Look for “Watch now” and click on the link with the meeting title to go to a livestream page. If you don’t see a link for the meeting, you may be early or the meeting may be starting late. Wait a few moments and try refreshing your Internet tab.

Recordings of past City Council meetings may be found here: https://vimeo.com/user100351763/videos/sort:date.

See also: “What to Expect at a Meeting of Chicago’s City Council” via the Better Government Association.

Documents

Notice Notice
3/12/2024
Agenda Agenda
3/12/2024

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