Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s proposed budget includes $233.9 million in tax hikes including rideshare prices and streaming services. It has already passed a key committee in the city council.

Chicago’s 2025 budget is facing a nearly $1 billion gap. Mayor Brandon Johnson’s plan to close it: increase taxes. The city’s rising non-personnel costs, now at $6.6 billion, will outpace its grant funding, squeeze taxpayers and increase regressive fees.

Chicago speed cameras sent drivers $28 million less in tickets through September than during the first nine months of 2023. Annual revenues could spike again under proposals to drop the citywide speed limit or boost the number of cameras.

High cigarette taxes give Illinoisans a financial reason to sneak in smokes from other states. Illinois is among the 10 states with the most smuggling.