Rebuked on a pop tax, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle on Monday proposed cutting $200 million through a mix of laying off midlevel managers, holding the line on raises and requiring workers to take unpaid days off.

Though she had vowed that budget cuts would be up to commissioners, a re-election-seeking Preckwinkle reversed course and got out the paring knife eight days before a county-imposed Nov. 21 deadline to put a spending plan in place.

Chicago aldermen on Monday pushed back hard against the idea of giving the CTA a “blank check” — by raising ride-hailing fees to bankroll $180 million in CTA improvements — without more control over CTA finances.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s $64.7 million package of tax increases and fee hikes survived an early test vote with two abstentions.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan to save Chicago’s dying taxicab industry sailed through a City Council committee Monday over the strenuous objections of a union representing cabbies.

Meg Lewis, campaign coordinator for Cabdrivers United, a union affiliated with AFSCME Council 31, argued that opening the door for cabdrivers to drive older vehicles — while joining their ride-hailing competitors in charging surge prices, and being screened without fingerprinting — is not the answer to what ails the taxicab industry.

Uber and Lyft have been game-changers in Chicago, and not just for their customers. They’ve broadsided an industry that once had the hail-a-ride market all to itself — the taxicab community. For years cab owners have complained that ride-share apps had an unfair advantage. Some aldermen and state lawmakers have wanted to more heavily regulate the ride-share industry. We’ve argued that those initiatives would raise prices and stifle innovation.

Instead, we’ve advocated scaling back regulation on the taxi industry as the best way to level the playing field. Finally, it looks like City Hall’s getting the message.

A top teacher union official at the City Colleges of Chicago chastised Chancellor Juan Salgado for his “dismissive” response to a Better Government Association investigation that found lowered standards and manipulated data created a misleading record of success.

In an open letter to Salgado sent today, Cook County College Teachers Union Local 1600 President Tony Johnston demanded sweeping changes in the administration of the seven-campus college system and raised serious questions about City College’s response to the BGA story.

Encouraging news for Chicago’s tourism industry: Mayor Rahm Emanuel had hoped to reach 55 million annual visitors by 2020. But now it looks like the city will reach it’s goal – three years early.

The McHenry County Board will vote on a budget Tuesday night that includes an 11.2 percent reduction in the county’s property tax levy.

Although the budget still needs a vote, McHenry County Board Chairman Jack Franks chalks the cuts going before the board as a victory.

Arlington Heights is proposing a 2.6 percent property tax levy increase next year to offset lower revenues from sales, income and telecommunication taxes.

It would mark the first time in three years that the village plans to raise the amount of tax dollars it collects from property owners just to maintain services. Previous tax hikes were earmarked for additional road improvements.

Des Plaines Elementary District 62 school board members may terminate the employment of Superintendent Floyd Williams during a special meeting Wednesday.

A meeting agenda released Monday indicates the board will consider a separation agreement with Williams, who’s in the middle of a three-year contract. Williams has been absent nearly a month for an undisclosed reason the district has called a private matter.

Elk Grove Township District 59 school board members indicated Monday that consolidating with Mount Prospect District 57 wouldn’t be advantageous, but they did not completely shut down the possibility of combining.

Talks of consolidation have arisen as District 57 struggles to balance its budget and may have a tax referendum on the March ballot. Residents who’ve attended community forums about the tax referendum have asked the district to gauge interest in consolidating with neighboring districts.

The decommissioning of a single fire truck in the city of Peoria would result in diminished public safety, an outcome the local firefighters union argued Monday should be unacceptable.

Dozens of members of Peoria Firefighters Local 50 flanked union president Ryan Brady as he delivered a message outside Peoria City Hall: Residents should contact elected officials and demand proposed cuts not take place.

Apparently we owe you an apology, gentle readers: We’ve been lax in pointing out just how dire our state’s financial situation is.

That’s the likely explanation for most of our state lawmakers thinking now is the time for a spending spree on roads and other infrastructure.