Medium: How Chicago has used Financial Engineering to Paper over its Massive Budget Gap
Chicago made headlines at the end of February after Moody’s downgraded the city’s general obligation bond rating to Baa2. Moody’s has cut Chicago’s rating five notches in less than two years. This downgrade, however, placed the city’s credit below the termination triggers on some of its outstanding interest rate swaps. The city has been working to renegotiate the terms of those contracts with its counterparties.
If Chicago’s general obligation rating falls below investment grade, the city’s credit deterioration will become a self-fulfilling prophesy. The city risks nearly $400 million of swap termination payments and the acceleration of its $294 million of outstanding short-term debt.
Unsurprisingly, some of Chicago’s bonds are already trading at junk levels.Chicago CUSIPs are listed here.
KFVS: Illinois makes tax-break deals with 3 companies
The Illinois Department of Commerce says it has reached tax-break deals with three companies following Gov. Bruce Rauner’s recent decision to reinstate corporate tax incentives.
The deals through the EDGE tax-credit program, though, would not provide tax incentives until Rauner and Illinois lawmakers agree on the overdue state budget.
The department did not provide the size of the tax breaks the companies would receive.
WSIL: Frivolous Illinois workers' comp claims leading to unbearable insurance premiums, business advocates say
Casey Van Winkle has a job that people love to demonize. He’s a personal injury attorney.
“If it can happen to a body, we’ve probably seen it,” he said with a smile inside his firm’s law library Tuesday night.
Van Winkle is speaking out against a growing chorus of business advocates in Illinois who are calling for workers’ compensation reform, saying it’s so easy to get paid that insurance premiums in the Prairie State are astronomical.
But Van Winkle, of the Womick Law Firm in Herrin, believes the vast majority of the people he’s represented over the years really were hurt. And he argues it’s already too difficult for people with legitimate claims to get the help they deserve, since at least part of an employee’s claim is usually disputed.
Chicago Now: Chicago Home Prices May Actually Be Declining
For some time now Chicago has been bouncing around near the bottom of the 20 metro areas tracked by Case Shiller in terms of year over year single family home price gains. With this morning’s release of the September Case Shiller home price index we ended up dead last with only a 1.1% gain. The next lowest metro area was Washington with a 2.1% gain. At the other end of the spectrum were metros like San Francisco (of course) and Denver with 11.2% and 10.9% gains respectively. And, heck, Detroit turned in a 5.6% gain. Will we ever have our day in the sun?
The even bigger concern is that Chicago home prices appear to be on the decline. Once again Chicago’s seasonally adjusted home prices dropped from the previous month – this time by 0.4%. In a strict and normalized sense this means that Chicago home prices are actually declining even though it hasn’t yet shown up in the year over year numbers.
The graph below shows the long term trend in year over year gains. The good news is that condo prices are still showing much healthier year over year gains at 3.6% but that is the lowest number in 9 months.
The Atlantic: The Chicago Protests Aren't Just About Laquan McDonald
Marchers took to the streets of Chicago Tuesday night, protesting the death of Laquan McDonald. McDonald, a 17-year-old black man, was shot by Officer Jason Van Dyke in October 2014, but video of his death was only released Tuesday, the same day Van Dyke was charged with first-degree murder. In general, the protests seem to have remained calm. Police said there were few scuffles and fewer arrests.
But there’s at least one notable exception: Malcolm London. The 22-year-old Chicagoan was arrested and charged with aggravated battery to a police officer, a felony. London isn’t just any marcher, though. He’s a high-profile activist who has been particularly outspoken about McDonald’s death and has called for the firing of Police Commissioner Garry McCarthy. A well-regarded slam poet, hedelivered a Ted Talk two years ago.
What happened to lead to London’s arrest? Police say London took a swing at an officer, who was treated at a hospital and released. A Chicago Tribune reporter tweeted a picture that may show the moment, but it’s impossible to tell from the single frame whether London is actually punching anyone:
Forbes: 10 Reasons Illinois Bureaucrats (And Their Friends) Are Thankful Today
In Illinois, and many states, it sometimes feels like if anything happens for the good of the people, it’s entirely by accident. On Thanksgiving Day 2015, here are ten reasons why the bureaucrats – and their connected friends in both parties – are loving life.
10. Highly compensated Drivers Ed teachers – Four instructors clear nearly $900,000 in total compensation at Hinsdale High School District 86 (Hinsdale) “earning” base salaries up to $165,003, plus rich benefits. State taxpayers guarantee lifetime pensions.
9. Taxpayer subsidized political bloggers – 70 state agencies paid over $270,000 to a self-described political blogger based in the state capitol (specific recipient was Capitol Fax, corp: Ahead of Our Time Publishing, owner Rich Miller) since 2005. This year was the biggest ever for Capitol Fax with Republican Comptrollers Judy Baar-Topinka and Leslie Munger cutting the checks for $43,000.
City Limits: What’s crushing Chicago manufacturing?
When Tyson Foods Inc. announced Nov. 19 plans to close its longtime Ashland Avenue plant, nearly 500 Chicago workers found out they’ll be losing their jobs come 2016.
But the most disheartening aspect of these layoffs might not be the pink slips themselves, but that such losses have become the norm in the Windy City.
Nearly half of Chicago’s manufacturing jobs have disappeared over the last 15 years, according to data from the Illinois Department of Employment Security, or IDES. The city now sits at an all-time low for manufacturing employment.
CBS: More Than 1 In 4 Americans Believe Government Is The Enemy
More than 1 in 4 Americans believe that the government is the enemy, according to a new poll.
Pew Research Center found that 27 percent of registered voters say they think of government as an enemy, up 8 points since 1996. The latest poll looked at general public opinion regarding the federal government.