Cook County
2020 Budget Information
   

Cook County government provides vital services for 5.2 million residents of northeastern Illinois, including the City of Chicago, surrounding suburbs and unincorporated areas of Cook County. These services include:

• A system of public hospitals and ambulatory clinics
  
• Protection of persons and property services that include policing, corrections, and administration of justice through the Circuit Court System
  
• Property valuation and administration of property taxes for Cook County and all underlying municipalities, townships, school districts and other jurisdictions
  
• Economic development activities, including transportation infrastructure development and maintenance
  
• Election administration and vital records management
  
• Finance, administration and other central governmental service
  

The Final Appropriation Bill is driven by several policy goals to enhance Cook County’s services:

• Improve public health outcomes by expanding Medicaid coverage and investing in outpatient services to ensure vital health care access for the most vulnerable residents of Cook County.
  
• Foster a justice system that focuses on reducing recidivism and pretrial detention by investing in violence prevention programs, electronic monitoring, I-bonds, probationary and pretrial services.
  
• Provide economic development opportunities for impoverished communities in suburban Cook County through job training programs, public infrastructure funding and affordable housing.
  
• Invest in highway and transportation infrastructure to ensure Cook County maintains its competitiveness as the Midwest’s key distribution and logistics hub.
  
• Modernize delivery of County services by investing in technology infrastructure that will streamline operations across agencies and allow residents to interact with County government electronically.
  
• Promote a long-term plan for fiscal sustainability to address legacy liabilities and preserve essential public safety and public health services by reducing County government’s real estate footprint, sustain reductions in workforce, meticulous management of health benefit costs and elimination of redundant programs.
  

Services Offered by the County

A Message from the President

I am pleased to present to you our Cook County Budget for Fiscal Year 2020. This $6.2 billion budget is both responsible and responsive and guides our work to achieve our policy priorities on justice, health, economic development and the environment under the Policy Roadmap, my office’s five-year strategic plan.  - Toni Preckwinkle

Glossary

Financial Policies