Cook County unveils $218 million budget gap for 2025 – Chicago Tribune

Good afternoon, Chicago.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle is projecting a $218 million budget gap next year, largely driven by raises she granted to county employees and the resulting growth in needed pension payments.

While Preckwinkle’s finance team said this week it’s “a little too early” to say how that gap will be closed, they also projected the county is on track to end 2024 with a surplus of about $367 million, according to figures released as part of the county’s midyear forecast.

Here’s what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/latest-headlines and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.

Subscribe to more newsletters | Puzzles & Games | Daily horoscope | Ask Amy

Giselle Rodriguez hands her daughter, Nya, 1, to her husband, Michael Whitley, after picking up Nya and her sister from day care on June 18, 2024, in Bolingbrook. Rodriguez, who emigrated from Mexico without documentation as a child, married Whitley, a U.S. citizen, in 2019, and the couple is expecting their third child next month. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune) — Giselle Rodriguez hands her daughter Nya, 1, to her husband, Michael Whitley, after picking up Nya and her sister from day care on June 18, 2024, in Bolingbrook. Rodriguez, who emigrated from Mexico without documentation as a child, married Whitley, a U.S. citizen, in 2019, and the couple is expecting their third child next month. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago-area immigrants hopeful over Biden’s executive order that offers pathways to citizenship to spouses of US citizens

Though some local stakeholders applaud President Joe Biden’s offer to provide relief to hundreds of thousands of such immigrants, they pledge their commitment to continue pushing their agenda to encourage the Biden administration to provide much more expansive and comprehensive immigration reform. Read more here.

More top news stories: