Illinois

Struggling cities like Chicago need to embark on serious restructuring efforts before it’s too late and mounting retirement debt pushes them toward the fate of Detroit, said some architects of that city’s bankruptcy.

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner’s proposed budget relies on unrealistic and potentially harmful cuts as well as savings that don’t appear achievable, according to a report from Chicago’s Civic Federation.

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner called on Chicago City Council members to get behind pieces of his turnaround agenda if they want his backing for their legislative want list.

Struggling to close a $1 billion budget gap, Chicago Public Schools will curtail capital spending in its next budget and take aim at its teachers' labor contract.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has tapped public transit veteran Dorval R. Carter Jr. to take the helm of the Chicago Transit Authority.

Rookie Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner and the General Assembly enter the last month of the regular legislative session without visible progress on a state budget or the governor's proposed 'turnaround' plan.

Chicago's pension woes run so deep they pose a long-term fiscal threat even if the city overcomes pending legal and political hurdles to its stabilization efforts, Moody's Investors Service warns in a new report.

Chicago’s chief financial officer, Lois Scott, and municipal market participants, look back on her tenure as she prepares to leave the office after four years.

Chicago's chief financial officer, Lois Scott, formally submitted her resignation Friday.

Moody's Investors Service has stripped a suburban Chicago suburban park district of its investment grade rating due to concerns it will default on near term debt service payments.

Pension obligation bonds are land mines municipal issuers should avoid, according to Janney Capital Markets.

Chicago’s CFO, Lois Scott, is promoting the city's new plan to take on $200 million of new debt to pay for canceling interest-rate swaps and to phase out debt restructurings.

Chicago will phase out the use of scoop-and-toss debt restructuring, convert a $900 million floating rate portfolio to fixed and exit the attached interest rate swaps under measures announced by Mayor Rahm Emanuel Wednesday.

Chicago could sink into speculative grade territory if it fails to quickly make headway in tackling its pension and budgetary mess, Nuveen Asset Management LLC warns in a new research report.

Chapter 9 guru James Spiotto says states are increasingly realizing the importance of early intervention in their distressed cities to avoid the crisis of a municipal bankruptcy where everyone loses.

Northwestern University is offering more than $600 million of its gilt-edged paper to taxable and tax-exempt buyers to refund some debt and raise financing for projects in an ongoing $2.6 billion capital program.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel tapped Forrest Claypool, his longtime friend and hand-picked head of the Chicago Transit Authority, as his next chief of staff.

Chicago-based general government banker Eric Rockhold started Monday with Bank of America Merrill Lynch as a co-head of the central region, industry sources said.

The Art Institute of Chicago said it’s received the largest gift ever in a 42 piece collection valued in published reports at $400 million.

Cook County, Ill. budget director Andrea Gibson is leaving the top county job after four years on the job, board President Toni Preckwinkle announced April 21.