Rebecca Hendrick
Department of Public Administration
University of Illinois at Chicago
Martin Luby
John Glenn School of Public Affairs
Ohio State University
Jill Mason Terzakis
Department of Public Administration
University of Illinois at Chicago
Abstract
This research describes the Great Recession’s impact on the City of Chicago budget and financial decisions about revenues, spending, and borrowing. It describes the economic and fiscal characteristics of the City of Chicago and the condition of its budget prior to the Great Recession in order to help separate budget deficits that existed before the recession from recession-driven changes in revenues and expenses. It identifies factor that have contributed to the city’s current and future expected deficits and changes in its financial position, and the research discusses how well the city is positioned for dealing with the lasting effects of the recession beyond 2011 and after the completion of stimulus funding in FY 2013.
