Gov't Finance & Accountability reporter, @IllinoisAnswers/@BetterGov. Formerly of @thedailylinechi, @trdchicago & @DNAinfoChi. Tips: [email protected]
Chicago
Joined June 2009
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The City Council could be on the verge of a huge step in the years-long fight for Chicago to adopt a comprehensive apartment registry.
One reason that matters: many of the buildings that rack up the most buildings violations have unclear owners, via @drewjayadams & me:
ALT A bar chart with the following text: Buildings with obscured or corporate ownership more likely to receive 311 complaints than those owned by individuals "Buildings controlled by individuals are the least likely to receive large numbers of complaints despite making up over half of all buildings that have received 311 complaints in 2026 so far. Meanwhile, buildings with hidden owners and buildings controlled by LLCs and other companies are about 3 times more likely to have received five or more complaints this year."
After years of dismissing calls for proactive safety inspections (the norm in many other big cities) Chicago officials now call it a long-range goal — and a registry could be the first step, they say.
Full story here:
illinoisanswers.org/2026/10/…
Important story about millions in critical infrastructure funds being put at risk by spotty bookkeeping:
In May, an IDOT employee sent Evanston officials an urgent email: She directed the city to pause transfers out of its motor fuel tax fund, saying the city may owe the account "millions,” with “deficiencies” through 2024 over $14 million. illinoisanswers.org/2026/10/…
The city has been trying to make this happen since the first Emanuel administration. In case you’re wondering how long it takes to acquire property from railroads.
dnainfo.com/chicago/20150527…
(Shoutout to intrepid Sauganash beat reporter @HeatherCherone)
The upcoming public meeting on the Weber Spur is your chance to grill CDOT officials about the trail proposal.
chicago.gov/city/en/sites/li…
Tax-increment financing is opaque and complicated, arguably by design. So last year, we had an idea: what if we could show the actual impact of TIFs on all of our tax bills?
Today, we've published the result:
🧵
ALT A graphic saying, "If No TIFs Existed, Your Tax Bill Could be $1,130 Lower"
TIFs reduce the taxable value available for local governments to levy on, which pushes rates higher.
We've worked for more than a year with @miurbanchicago to develop a tool that lets you look up how much.
tifexplainer.miurban-dashboa…
Data is based on @AssessorCook's PTAX simulator.
By declaring larger and larger surpluses, city leaders have been able to use this obscure development tool as a back-door loophole to raise hundreds of millions for everyday operating costs.
Read our full story:
illinoisanswers.org/2026/10/…
Alex Nitkin retweeted
Illinois issued nearly $1 billion in tax credits to film and TV productions over the past six years.
The film industry and Gov. Pritzker say the credits help keep Illinois competitive for film jobs. Critics warn they could shift hundreds of millions in fiscal burden to taxpayers.
illinoisanswers.org/2026/09/…
Alex Nitkin retweeted
Cook County Board Defers Resolution Calling for Independent Review of State’s Largest Jail.
illinoisanswers.org/2026/09/…
Alex Nitkin retweeted
Childcare centers across Illinois hire qualified workers, then wait … and wait … for their background checks to clear.
Federal requirements say those checks should be completed within 45 days.
Illinois Answers found they’re taking months.
Alex Nitkin retweeted
In the last decade, development on land zoned for multifamily residential has gone from 2/3 single family to 7/8 multifamily daniel-kay-hertz.ghost.io/th…
We found county reductions knocked ~$2B off the taxable value of ORD-area data centers. 2 main drivers:
💸 Incentives pushed by mayors who feared the DCs would otherwise go elsewhere
💸 Appeals from DC companies arguing the buildings should be taxed like like plain ol' warehouses
The average #Northlake homeowner, in the northwest suburbs of #Chicago, could save more than $2,000 a year if #datacenters paid property taxes based on higher assessments.
ALT A plane flies over a data center near O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. Text on image reads: O'Hare-area data centers get millions in tax breaks. Homeowners have to pay for it.
Many ask: why do mayors want data centers so badly?
They pay tons in property taxes without generating truck traffic. Even after receiving breaks, the 18 DCs in our analysis are paying $71M in property taxes this year — more than most industrial users.
illinoisanswers.org/2026/08/…
Alex Nitkin retweeted
The feds charge State Rep. Carol Ammons with fraud, a judge scolds U.S. Atty. Andrew Boutros, massive rains tax local reservoirs and more on the Week in Review with the great @bellwak @HeatherCherone @RobHartWBBM and @AlexNitkin — 7p on @wttw and streaming!
Alex Nitkin retweeted
Mayor Brandon Johnson is direct intro-ing three CHA commissioners in next week’s Housing Committee. His last two appointees have been stuck in Rules amid resistance from alders who want to stop him for wielding control of the board. Johnson needs a supermajority to remove the CEO
We've been working on this dive into Chicago's tree planting record for the better part of a year. Worth your time today!
