Chicago Public Schools are shrinking. But their bill to taxpayers continues to rise. | Pinterest
Chicago Public Schools are shrinking. But their bill to taxpayers continues to rise. | Pinterest
Chicago Public Schools (CPS) served 22,000 fewer students last year than it did two decades ago.
But it is taking 50 percent more in property taxes from Chicago homeowners to educate this smaller student body, according to an analysis of CPS budget and enrollment data by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.
Adjusted for inflation-- in today's dollars-- CPS billed property taxpayers $1.9 billion for 364,897 students in 1998.
Last year, it billed $3.0 billion to serve 342,520 students, or half as much more to serve 5 percent fewer.
The analysis comes as CPS leaders make plans to raise spending to record levels as other Chicago taxing bodies follow suit.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has raised property taxes on city residents in six of the last seven years, as has Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who supports a 2 percent statewide property tax and has been actively backing pro-property tax hike candidates for all local offices.
Preckwinkle is running to replace Emanuel as mayor in 2019.
CPS had as many as 383,271 students in 2003 before it started steadily losing them. That's off a high of 583,098 in 1968, according to a 1989 report in the Chicago Tribune.
At its current rate of tax increases and student declines, by 2027 CPS will bill property taxpayers $3.7 billion and have an enrollment of 327,000.
$22,390 per student, 26 percent testing at grade level
CPS plans to spend a record $7.6 billion total in 2019-- including state and federal subsidies-- or about $22,390 per student, according to a report published last month by the Civic Federation of Chicago.
That's among the highest in the state, more than many of the wealthiest suburban districts.
In contrast, Hinsdale School District 86 spent $19,113 per student last year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). Lake Forest School District 68 spent $18,267.
Unlike those districts, CPS receives 45 percent of its funding from state and federal taxpayers. Hinsdale and Lake Forest are funded almost exclusively by local property taxpayers; both get about 5 percent of their annual budgets from Springfield and Washington, D.C.
Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey, an avowed socialist, believes suburban taxpayers aren't paying enough to CPS. He and others, including Illinois State Board of Education Chief Tony Smith, have called for an additional $1,500 per household tax for public schools, most of which will go to raising Chicago teacher salaries.
Sharkey and Smith are among those arguing higher taxes and more public school spending will result in better performance. And there is some room for improvement.
Only 26 percent of CPS students passed the statewide standardized "PARCC" exam in 2017; 74 percent were deemed "not ready for the next level."
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Why are your Chicago property taxes rising? CPS costs more.
How much has CPS' tax bill grown over the past 20 years?
| Property tax (real) | Enrollment | Property Tax Per Pupil | Tax CHG | Enrollment CHG | |
| 1997 | $1,892,333,223 | 357,626 | $5,291 | ||
| 1998 | $1,972,742,656 | 364,895 | $5,406 | 4.25% | 2.03% |
| 1999 | $2,012,447,151 | 367,118 | $5,482 | 2.01% | 0.61% |
| 2000 | $1,997,403,911 | 371,721 | $5,373 | -0.75% | 1.25% |
| 2001 | $1,980,371,335 | 376,807 | $5,256 | -0.85% | 1.37% |
| 2002 | $2,017,196,384 | 382,393 | $5,275 | 1.86% | 1.48% |
| 2003 | $2,059,718,220 | 383,271 | $5,374 | 2.11% | 0.23% |
| 2004 | $2,039,242,370 | 370,986 | $5,497 | -0.99% | -3.21% |
| 2005 | $2,057,242,435 | 374,537 | $5,493 | 0.88% | 0.96% |
| 2006 | $2,089,390,784 | 368,516 | $5,670 | 1.56% | -1.61% |
| 2007 | $2,089,492,320 | 358,634 | $5,826 | 0.00% | -2.68% |
| 2008 | $2,064,237,546 | 352,631 | $5,854 | -1.21% | -1.67% |
| 2009 | $2,167,745,220 | 349,636 | $6,200 | 5.01% | -0.85% |
| 2010 | $2,301,011,212 | 360,511 | $6,383 | 6.15% | 3.11% |
| 2011 | $2,176,800,220 | 350,827 | $6,205 | -5.40% | -2.69% |
| 2012 | $2,512,081,248 | 355,105 | $7,074 | 15.40% | 1.22% |
| 2013 | $2,326,569,536 | 353,508 | $6,581 | -7.38% | -0.45% |
| 2014 | $2,281,400,820 | 355,634 | $6,415 | -1.94% | 0.60% |
| 2015 | $2,383,014,304 | 353,469 | $6,742 | 4.45% | -0.61% |
| 2016 | $2,458,992,736 | 351,726 | $6,991 | 3.19% | -0.49% |
| 2017 | $2,714,956,000 | 342,520 | $7,926 | 10.41% | -2.62% |
| 2018 | $2,909,400,000 | 340,979 (E) | $8,154 (E) | 7.16% | -0.45% |
| 2019 | $2,984,300,000 | 339,444 (E) | $8,388 (E) | 2.57% | -0.45% |
| TOTALS | +48.5% | -4.9% |
Sources: Civic Federation; Illinois State Board of Education. 2018 & 2019 CPS enrollment numbers, and per-pupil property tax numbers, are estimates based on 10-year trends
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