Department of Housing

The Department of Housing oversees a range of housing programs including homeowner and homebuyer resources, the city’s Affordable Requirements Ordinance (which mandates a certain number of designated-affordable units in private housing developments 10 units or larger) and pandemic-era relief programs. DoH does not directly provide public housing, which is administered by the Chicago Housing Agency, a separate agency with its own internal budget and leadership.

Change Highlights and Context

  • The 24.4% reduction in DoH’s departmental budget is the largest proportional cut to any department in the 2023 budget.
  • The bulk of DoH’s budget cut is driven by a 92.9% reduction in its grant-funded Housing Assistance appropriation, down from $137.4 million in 2022 to $9.7 million in 2023.
  • Other programmatic appropriations have also been eliminated or reduced:
    • The Low Income Housing appropriation has been reduced 33.3%, down from $15 million to $10 million.
    • Pass-through funding to delegate agencies (third parties contracted to administer housing-related programs) is down $5.2 million, a 10.9% reduction from 2022.
    • The Foreclosure Prevention appropriation, $407,000 in the 2022 budget, has been entirely eliminated.
  • DoH is listed in the Recovery Plan Exhibit as the parent department for seven of the city’s Chicago Recovery Plan pandemic relief programs, detailed below. DoH’s Recovery Plan programs were budgeted using proceeds from the Chicago Recovery Plan’s $660 million general obligation bond sale. The bond-funded programs are not individually itemized in the city budget, meaning it is unclear which programs were fully funded for their entire lifespan in the 2022 budget, which will continue to be funded in 2023, and which will not continue in 2023.

Department of Planning and Development

Change Highlights and Context

  • DPD’s budget increase is primarily driven by $113.9 million in the Rehabilitation Loans GT appropriation, up 1527.5% from $7 million in 2022.
  • The Professional and Technical Services (outside contracting) appropriation is also up significantly, a 328.5% increase from $12.5 million in 2022 to $53.6 million in 2023.
  • The 2023 budget adds an additional Assistant Commissioner position to the department, part of a citywide increase in upper management positions. Across all departments, taking into account the various assistant/deputy/managing title variants, the 2023 budget adds 45 new Director or Commissioner positions.
  • DPD is listed in the Recovery Plan Exhibit as the parent department for four of the city’s Chicago Recovery Plan pandemic relief programs, detailed below. DPD’s Recovery Plan programs were budgeted using both American Rescue Plan investment funds and general obligation bond funds. The 2023 budget does not include ARP funding for DPD, and the bond-funded programs are not individually itemized in the city budget, meaning it is unclear which DPD Recovery Plan programs were fully funded for their entire lifespan in the 2022 budget, which will continue to be funded in 2023 (and with what funding), and which will not continue in 2023.

Department of Streets and Sanitation

The Department of Streets and Sanitation is one of Chicago’s most visible service departments, providing forestry, trash and recycling, graffiti removal and street sweeping services. DSS also employs the 50 Ward Superintendents, aldermanic appointees who coordinate ward-level services and rapid response to streets and sanitation issues.

Change Highlights and Context

  • DSS’s relatively small budget increase is primarily driven by increases in external services, including:
    • A 5.7% increase in the Waste Disposal Services appropriation, up $3 million to a total of $56.6 million in 2023
    • A 2.8% increase in the Professional and Technical Services (outside contracting) appropriation, up $1.3 million to a total of $45.7 million in 2023
    • An 8.8% increase in the Rental Equipment and Services appropriation, up $475,458 to a total of $5.8 million in 2023
  • The 2023 budget adds an additional Managing Deputy Commissioner position to the department, part of a citywide increase in upper management positions. Across all departments, taking into account the various assistant/deputy/managing title variants, the 2023 budget adds 45 new Director or Commissioner positions.
  • The Bureau of Rodent Control is the only DSS section seeing staff cuts, with a net reduction of nine positions. The Bureau of Sanitation saw the largest staffing increase, with a net increase of 20 positions.

Geoffrey Cubbage is a policy and budget analyst focusing on the Illinois General Assembly and Chicago's City Council. Prior to joining the Better Government Association in 2022, Geoffrey served as Director...