Mayor Johnson rejects cuts in CPS’ proposed budget meant to fill a half-billion deficit

The day after Chicago Public Schools officials released a budget proposal that filled a half-billion dollar deficit in part by some cutbacks in staff and other areas, Mayor Brandon Johnson made the surprising declaration that he would not accept cuts by the district.

“That is not what the people of Chicago elected me to do … was to cut our school district,” the mayor said at an unrelated news conference Thursday. “I am not going to do it.”

It is highly unusual for the mayor, who appoints the schools CEO, to suggest he is unhappy with the school district’s budget after it is presented to the public. It also is unclear what options Johnson has to fill the deficit, though his deputy mayor for education, Jen Johnson, said the administration was “working on something.”

The Board of Education is expected to consider the budget proposal at its monthly meeting July 25. By law, CPS must pass a balanced budget.

The mayor got riled up as he took aim at the state, as he has many times before, saying, “Every single school district deserves more dollars. This is not just an issue with the city of Chicago. Now, let me just give you the specifics: The city of Chicago is owed $1.1 billion based upon the algorithm that the state has put forward. The state of Illinois knows it owes us that.”

Johnson, CPS officials and the Chicago Teachers Union made the case for more funding to state lawmakers and Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office in the spring but were not successful.

Johnson’s disapproval aligns with the Chicago Teachers Union, which yesterday sharply criticized CPS CEO Pedro Martinez’s budget as “short-sighted.” Martinez was appointed by former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Johnson opted to keep him on.

Among the mayor’s remaining options would be to tell the school district to budget for additional state money even if it’s not guaranteed, forcing a showdown between the state and the school district in the coming months.

But that has been tried in the past and did not work out well: Under Mayor Rahm Emanuel, there were difficult mid-year budget cuts. Already, CPS is anticipating it will have to come up with more cash in the coming months after it settles a contract with the CTU. Those expected raises are not factored into the current budget proposal.

The mayor could also raise property taxes, find more city money somewhere to give CPS or tell the school district to take out a loan. Yet the mayor has promised not to raise taxes, the city has its own financial problems and the school district is already carrying a debt load of about $9 billion, with an annual payment that amounts to about $3,000 per student.

The $9.9 billion budget proposal CPS released Wednesday shows officials filled a $505 million deficit by proposing administrative budget cuts, leaving vacancies unfilled and restructuring debt, among other efforts.

The cuts included $30 million meant to reduce class sizes, much of it to provide teacher aides in oversized classrooms. Hundreds of aides were laid off last month. CPS said it would also reduce central office positions and freeze hiring, as well as set aside less money for tutors and have 85 fewer bus monitors.

The deficit was caused by a number of factors, including the winding down of federal COVID relief money that the school district used to add staff. At the same time, the school district has more students identified as disabled or English learners and must provide those students extra support.

Sarah Karp covers education for WBEZ. Nader Issa covers education for the Sun-Times.