Weekend Edition | Economics Professor Questions Effectiveness of Chicago Budget Changes

Illinois in Focus

A Chicago economics professor has questions about the potential effectiveness of the city’s new budget restrictions. City Budget Director Annette Guzman outlined the changes this week, after Mayor Brandon Johnson projected a budget deficit of nearly a billion dollars in 2025. Guzman said a citywide hiring freeze would take effect immediately. Frances Lee is an economics professor at Loyola University of Chicago. Lee said economists have a saying when it comes to hiring. “We can achieve full employment if we hire half of the population to dig a hole and the other half to fill it. If we are eliminating these kinds of government jobs, then, yes, by all means do the hiring freeze,” Lee said.