Johnson is proposing more than 617 million dollars in new taxes, mostly targeting Chicago's wealthiest residents and biggest companies.

It's part of an effort to close the city's billion dollar budget gap without raising property taxes or cutting services.

The new taxes would help fund violence, prevention and mental health programs.

But critics warn the plan could hurt job growth and drive businesses out of the city.

Joining us for more, 6th Ward Alderman William Hall, representing communities like Chatham, Auburn, Gresham and Englewood and 28th Ward Alderman Jason Ervin, who represents neighborhoods including West Garfield Park Austin in North Lawndale.

He's also the Budget Committee chair and 34th Ward Alderman Bill Conway representing downtown communities like the West and South Loop gentleman.

Welcome back.

Thanks for joining us.

So I want to go around and everybody's reaction to the mayor's budget proposal alderman home.

We'll start with I think it's a Trump who fly budget.

Number one.

People are still keeping a job.

No cuts in this budget.

Secondly, we're maintaining the support we have for mental health services, which is key.

>> Over 30% of the calls to 9-1-1, of people into distress.

We invested in jobs for young people.

You will give you yearlong jobs for young people.

Also what we see is no property taxes.

Macfie.

So we looked out for the Brit windows in the city of Chicago which are middle class.

Those who go to work every day.

want to come back home to the homes that they work so hard to opener been some question >> I agree with a lot of what ultimate hall, the many of the things puts on the table of the race, but on the table designed not to hurt everyday Chicagoans are in their pocket books was told us about increase property taxes as well as the assessments that were see.

We'll see it this year's times built whenever they show up as well trying to work toward Trump created some economic parity some of the larger corporations.

So again, it's not something everyone on sure he's happy with.

But again, at the end of the day, no one wants to decrease services.

We talk to residents about that.

They don't want to see decrease services.

We also want to maintain the line property taxes.

Well, understand hit.

Taxes is a one to talk about a little controversy.

I think we may ultimately have to make some adjustments there.

But at the end of the day, we want to make sure the city keeps functioning that we keep delivering.

Dropping our kron doubt delivery from for residents.

>> And we're going to come back to that had tax conversation in just a second.

Of course, aldermen.

Conway, though, your reaction, the mayor's budget proposal.

>> Yeah, time are already very much worried about affordability in the city.

I am concerned of all the taxes and and fees we are adding on on Chicagoans here in a brief look at our city more broadly really to grow the size of the city and what that's going require is affordable housing as well as jobs and this part really hurts both those things by taking a massive tip surplus which often is used in affordable housing as well the jobs tax, itself I be.

It's really will create at some people are trying to do that.

>> intervene.

You mentioned the mayor's plan, which includes a $21 per employee monthly tax on companies with more than 100 workers expected to generate about 100 million dollars.

Tell us about how this tax works and and how it gets towards some of the needs that you all are trying to fill.

>> Essentially, it is a tax individuals companies over 100 which are only looks 3% of the city's 97 1% of the companies are not impacted bothers chains previously, it was at 15 move to 50.

This is 100 people are a better meeting for time equipment.

So if you have 200 part time was working 20 hours a week.

That would be 100 FTSE as we as we call them.

And again, it's designed toward today-it's of people talked about which have been focused toward public safety.

All of these things do.

We're looking to fun with this particular set of dollars around public safety to include summer jobs violence intervention program.

it's a mental health component as well.

So again, this is something I believe corporate Chicago's continuously talked about We need to step in.

We need to fund.

We need to work through some of the challenges we talk about public safety.

This has been a method to mayors come forth to LeBron.

>> All the rain, Conway and the mayor says that the head tax would affect only 3% of Chicago businesses, challenge that.

What is your concern?

>> Yeah, well, first of all, that math is just not accurate.

21 $21 a month or B $252 a year.

21 times too well, he said it's going to raise 100 million dollars 100 million dollars divided by $252 a month is about 400,000.

There are about 1.2 million private sector workers and city Chicago.

So I don't really see how that math mask.

effects to raise that kind of money or have perfect a 3rd of the private sector workforce.

The city.

>> do you think this is the right time like to to reinstate this?

The city have won once upon a time it was repealed.

>> Yeah, they tried this in Seattle back in 2018 and they reveal that more less than a month later based on all pushback they got from private sector as well as just the taxpayers.

>> All all, what do you make of the argument the Pentax could stifle job and business rules are one of things.

I will Chicago's a global city.

16 billion dollar economy.

Top 10 in the world.

Corporations want to be in Chicago.

United Airlines, for example, one of the big U.S.

corporations that we have you 6, 0, 6, 1, 9 zip code producing some of the longest standing career workers for United Airlines.

Will companies leave Chicago?

They don't have the workforce.

It follows.

They don't have the record a single get people to work at these companies.

So again, 3% paying for rolled paying for safety.

It's not access impossible.

It's essentially making sure that we get are P a share as a big city with a 60 billion dollar economy.

>> in his address to the council last week, Mayor Johnson, he framed his budget proposal as a response to President Trump and federal funding cuts.

Here's a little bit of that.

>> The Trump attack and our city is economic attack on our city.

Harsh reality is we're dealing with the Trump cuts.

The Trump cuts to public health, the cuts to public safety to Medicaid, to snap, to services that address homelessness.

And drug addiction.

His cuts to violence prevention is cuts to public education and transportation.

This is not rhetoric.

This is a reality.

>> Way.

What do you make of that framing?

>> You don't want I actually appreciated Mayor Johnson talking about SNAP and Medicaid benefits.

I think all of us I think we as Democrats don't talk about the tens of millions of Americans that that will hurt and specifically one thing I didn't really appreciate in the mayor's budget what he talked about.

How we We need to beef up the Department Law.

I mean, the Department Law is going to be our first line of defense regarding regarding grants that may be taken to us from the federal government.

So, you know, I I think we as Democrats have not spent enough time talking about snap and Medicaid in particular and how it's going to hurt so many Chicagoans.

And I appreciate the mayor talking about.

>> Alderman Irvine, the budget also proposes a new tax on social media companies.

How would that work and why do you think now is the right time to to start bringing them into the taxing structure?

>> Well, ultimately they argue the feeding off of the data of many individuals in our city.

They're also creating second public health crises around mental health and the dollar's targeted from this particular taxa designed to help people.

We're experiencing mental health challenges.

Now, granted, this is the first of tax of its kind in the nation.

But I think it feeds into what is causing the issues.

So again, taxing those at over 100,000 users at the at the Reid has been set for, I think is a is a different way.

That's also a smart way to go about this because again, the social media platforms are created all types of havoc in all communities from a public safety perspective as well as from a mental health perspective, Alderman Conway.

>> Yeah, I know I I I first what I understand this would be popular with a lot of people, the social media companies of and a lot of times become platforms of hate and misinformation.

But significantly concern that there is going to be federal preemption in this area with the Commerce clause and otherwise.

So another I'm happy on.

We're beefing up the department a lot because we're certainly going to have to litigate this year.

It is worth noting in the budget that has has poured forth.

Now does not yet have any revenue allocated to to the social media tax.

Maybe that will be in a future amendment from the mayor's office.

didn't see that in there.

reading it this weekend.

>> Alderman Hall supporters in the City Council's progressive caucus say that this budget is a step towards ensuring that the wealthy Chicagoans pay their fair share.

Do you think that's an accurate description?

I think it is accurate enough.

Number one, we are the home of millionaires from Chicago Way down downstate our governor is a billionaire.

He just won 1.4 million playing, you know, gambling in Vegas.

And so at the end of the day, a fair share of taxation is what keeps to street paving keeps the lights on.

And moreover is keeps our investments that are essential to keep in Chicago say $144,000 is a cause.

Any time someone gets shot, 10 people shot.

1.4 million.

We opened up for me in 2 clinics in the midst of budget cuts in the midst of the migrant crisis.

And so those investments is what's driving down Biden's.

That's just one example of how investments from the rich to taxes keep Chicago State.

We cannot have a number one city that attracts people all over the world without people.

Pan De Sheriff city services as well as Sussex City areas that keeps Chicago stable.

So the one word that we haven't that none of us has mentioned so far in this conversation the P word that property that is not mentioned in in the mayor's proposal this year.

It was this time last year.

You all unanimously voted it down.

It has even come up in conversation.

Is that off the table entirely?

Well, we hope that we can have a hopefully a three-peat next year.

I mean, not raising property taxes fees is essential to everyday Chicagoans again, my war, 42,000 people, the average income is less than $40,000 a year.

And so we must make sure that people stay in their homes.

That's how you have a Trump proof.

A as you have people working.

People maintaining their homes and paying their fair share of property taxes without increasing.

the question now becomes, was it going to backlog from the assessor's office not providing tax payers what the costs will be for property.

We can fix that a later date.

But to keep people in their homes that they can afford and making sure that their neighborhoods looked decent for investment that they pay.

Their properties is what's to go.

And again, hopefully next year we have 3 years in a row when a property tax increases, Alderman Irvine, same question to Property taxes off the table.

I think that for this current year, I believe that they are off the table.

But I do caution we live.

These the same time.

>> And the daily use where we did not look at our property taxes there with the most stable former revenue.

And when you look what we did, what we did not do as a city during those years where we kept relatively flat levees that he's with the same time went and sold Now we would have had incremental increases along inflation.

During same time, the taxes would be the same level they are today, but we still are parking meters.

And we still on the Chicago Skyway.

So we must not be shortsighted thank August and it.

It sounds very good to say we're not doing that, but we have to understand the long-term ramifications of those types of decisions.

So I believe that there will be off the table for this year.

But I do believe that it's something that we may have to go back to in the future as we begin to stabilize unless we see some relief from Springfield in various points in other days.

One thing that I will say in that I that I look at this budget and we talk about to to surplus, not sure if you were going to talk about that, but that is a record level surplus that we're doing on this year.

And one thing that I will commit to today is that the budget for the city of Chicago will not leave the but government operations without side agreement from Chicago, Public schools, it's to their pension obligations and what they will be doing for the taxpayers of the city of Chicago.

I think it is unfair to the city's taxpayers end debt level of surplus to CPS without an agreement place.

>> Okay.

So before I let you all go got under a minute left Alderman Conway, one criticism of this budget from a watchdog Civic Federation is that the budget doesn't mean fully incorporate any of the suggestions that came from the budget.

The mayor's budget task force that was assembled earlier this year, which included property taxes tied to the rate of Was that task force to think it was just for show?

>> Well, I don't know.

That just for show over to your point, this is group that the Mayor's Office commission and a lot of that's not in there.

For example.

I mean, they identified in Fleet management savings are 16.5 to 30.9 million.

They said in terms of office optimization there will be potential savings of 23.9 million noting that we have 1200 more deaths in office is that we have employees.

we have.

>> So it sounds like there's right to more of those suggestions.

So they're those include.

Well, that in the management ordinance will be San additional items related to some of these things that they may not come out of the budget as they state on the paper.

But it's part of the management in the ordinance.

They could work to ensure that it will come about.

Yes, okay.

That makes understand it.

I do have to lead point we will.

We will have more conversations as his budget process continues.

We have to leave it