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If wishes were fishes…

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Illinois

* The Tribune on the new CPS budget…

Despite pressure from the teachers union to reject Chicago Public Schools’ proposed $9.9 billion budget, Board of Education members unanimously voted Thursday to pass the district’s spending plan for the 2024-25 school year.

While the vote may have settled the debate over addressing CPS’ $505 million deficit, the plan doesn’t account for future collective bargaining costs resulting from ongoing negotiations, with the approximately 30,000-member Chicago Teachers Union and the Chicago Principal Administrators Association of over 1,200 members. […]

“There is no surplus in the budget that would accommodate allocating additional money to CPS,” said a spokesperson for the governor’s office, adding that Johnson has not made a request to its office for additional state funding for CPS. “That budget is balanced and includes an additional $350 million for school districts across the state.” […]

The governor’s office noted in a statement to the Tribune that Pritzker has invested more than $1.8 billion in the state’s evidence-based funding formula — for which the state is progressively upping its contributions to school districts statewide with the goal of “adequate” funding by 2027. With the state already taking on teacher pipeline and retention programs and new early childhood education investments, more money will not be allocated to CPS this year, Pritzker’s spokesperson said. […]

“The district, city and state can’t be like people who finish dining out and then point to the other to pick up the tab,” CTU leadership said in their statement. “CEO Martinez should have taken the opportunity to stand up and join us in calling on Gov. Pritzker and the legislature to provide the resources owed to CPS students for the schools they deserve. Instead, the CEO chose the easy route.”

The “easy route” is pretending that the state and federal governments are gonna bail out the CPS budget this fiscal year, which started on July 1, by the way.

* WBEZ…

The mayor, who oversees Martinez, had demanded the district keep on its books a $175 million pension payment covering non-teacher staff. Former Mayor Lori Lightfoot initially shifted that expense from the city’s budget, which is separate from the CPS budget, in a highly criticized move. But in a major rebuke of the mayor, the budget approved Thursday did not include that payment. […]

On the pension payment dispute, CTU Vice President Jackson Potter implied the school board should consider paying the $175 million. The CTU had harshly criticized Lightfoot for saddling CPS with the payment, chiding her for “ripping off CPS” and “robbing students.” But Potter touted Johnson as a new type of mayor who needs resources in the city budget to invest in affordable housing and mental health services.

“We have to deal with the conundrum of robbing Peter to pay Paul on the city side,” he said.

Potter said the district should instead prioritize more strongly lobbying state and federal lawmakers for more funding, pointing to the Democratic National Convention’s arrival in August as a good time for CPS, the CTU and City Hall to put on a coordinated pressure campaign.

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Jul 26, 24 @ 12:17 pm

Comments

Mayor Johnson would like five billion fishes please. And make that to-go.

Comment by 47th Ward Friday, Jul 26, 24 @ 12:31 pm
“But in a major rebuke of the mayor, the budget approved Thursday did not include that payment”

So City Hall budget is now supposed to pick up that $175M in the general City 2025 budget? What if City Hall won’t or can’t get City Council to budget it? CPS sues City of Chicago for it? City Hall sues to make CPS pick it up? I’m legit confused by this $175M game of hot potato.

Comment by ChicagoBars Friday, Jul 26, 24 @ 12:45 pm
Kind of curious why CTU thinks they have anything to say about the CPS budget? Do they have some shared accountability for expenditures and revenue? Lol.

Comment by JS Mill Friday, Jul 26, 24 @ 12:46 pm
==Potter said the district should instead prioritize more strongly lobbying state and federal lawmakers for more funding==

Pro tip: Going to lawmakers and saying “you owe us $1B” is not a good way to go about getting more resources or more of anything for that matter. In fact, its a good way to wind up w nada.

Comment by low level Friday, Jul 26, 24 @ 12:47 pm
I can’t wait for CTU to take control of an elected CPS Board and show us where all this magic money is hidden!

Comment by NIU Grad Friday, Jul 26, 24 @ 12:49 pm
Mayor Johnson should be able to resolve this discussion quickly and amicably especially given his extensive executive level experience in negotiating bathroom time amongst his children.

Comment by Charles Edward Cheese Friday, Jul 26, 24 @ 1:26 pm