For first-time watchers, Chicago’s City Council can seem incomprehensible. Most of the business is done in a routine, rapid-fire succession of votes and gavel raps, punctuated by repetitions of the ...

In a memo sent Friday to the Chicago City Council’s ethics committee, city Inspector General Deborah Witzburg laid out a series of what her office characterizes as obstructions by the city’s law ...

A BGA Policy analysis of the 16 county detention centers across Illinois has found that only three successfully have completed audits mandated by federal law to enforce protections against sexual ...

Mayor Brandon Johnson released his proposed 2026 budget for the City of Chicago on Thursday, Oct. 16. As in previous years, BGA Policy will release a series of department-specific budget snapshots ...

Under Illinois’ Freedom of Information Act, there is a presumption that government records are open to the public. Body cam footage is an anomaly. Its availability is dictated by the Law Enforcement ...

The Chicago Police Department is the city’s largest department both in headcount and in overall funds appropriated, with nearly three times the positions budgeted as the next-largest Chicago Fire ...

The Board of Election Commissioners is established under state elections law and technically is part of the judicial branch, but receives operational funding from the City of Chicago. BoEC oversees ...

*Historical comparisons typically go back to 2011. For COPA, the average annual rate of change is given starting from 2018, the first full budget year following the department’s transition from its ...

Our Policy Agenda: The Better Government Association policy team researches, drafts, supports and advocates for legislation that improves transparency, efficiency, equity and accountability in ...

Inspectors general are responsible for the direct oversight of a given federal, state, county, or city agency. They aim to stop corruption and hold its agency accountable through leading ...

New limitations on campaign contributions from the owners and executives of city contractors could potentially keep hundreds of donations and hundreds of thousands of dollars out of Chicago’s next ...

From 2011-2025, CACC’s budget grew at an average rate of 5.7%, or 2.9% adjusted for inflation, compared to a citywide average rate of 8.3% (inflation-adjusted 4.4%). Over the past three complete ...