Public-Private Partnership is stabilizing communities, building community-based businesses and jobs and boosting homeownership across Chicago south and west sides, County suburbs

CHICAGO, IL – Today the Cook County Land Bank Authority (CCLBA) celebrated a landmark rehab of 200 once vacant, tax-delinquent properties left in the wake of the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis that are now back on the tax rolls and making communities whole again, block by block. 

Selected projects highlight Cook County’s transportation priorities.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today announced the approval of the first group of transportation projects selected as part of Cook County’s inaugural Invest in Cook grant program.

Intergovernmental agreements to fund $1.4 million for the eight projects were approved by the Cook County Board of Commissioners. 

Community shared solar power brings equity, jobs and protects the environment

The Cook County Department of Environmental Control and its partners have completed the first-ever assessment of community solar in Cook County, which can help make the benefits of renewable energy more widely available, create jobs and help protect our planet.  

Building on continuing efforts to crack down on the illegal cigarette trade, Cook County Department of Revenue (CCDOR) agents, in cooperation with the Sheriff’s Police, this week raided a Skokie business and discovered more than 1,500 unstamped packs of cigarettes in three hidden compartments.

In what is believed to be the largest confiscation of unstamped cigarettes this year, CCDOR issued fines totaling more than $47,000 for the contraband and two suspects face criminal charges due to the exceptionally large quantity of unstamped cigarettes found on the property.

On June 29, 2017, Cook County submitted a legal opinion to DOJ certifying compliance with federal law, specifically 8 U.S.C. §1373. We did this at DOJ's request in an attempt to ensure the continuity of federal funding that the County relies on to protect the public safety of our residents. Although we have not received a formal response from DOJ to date, we have been informed by the media that, following a preliminary assessment, the DOJ disagrees with the legal opinion we submitted.

Today the board exercised its collective will and set in motion a repeal of the sweetened beverage tax we approved last year. As I outlined last week, it is up to the commissioners to choose our direction on revenue, and I respect their authority to do so. Now, together, we must chart a new course toward the eighth consecutive balanced budget of my tenure as board president. 

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today presented a $5.36 billion Executive Budget Recommendation for Fiscal Year 2018 aimed at making the County healthier, safer and more efficient. The proposed budget avoids drastic cuts in critical services while confronting the County’s fiscal challenges. 

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation awarded a $1.85 million grant today to the Cook County justice system to safely reduce the jail population, divert certain nonviolent offenders from the court system and track efforts to remind defendants about future court dates.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today announced the appointment of William M. Barnes Jr. as Executive Director of the County’s Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (DHSEM).

Barnes has a lengthy background as a manager, administrator and attorney in private practice. Most recently he was General Counsel at the Illinois Department of Transportation. He served in a similar capacity with the Illinois Department of Corrections and the Office of the State Fire Marshal.

Today, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle delivered a speech to the City Club of Chicago, affirming her values as a leader and the role Cook County government plays to improve the lives of residents.