Pension and bond debts drain school resources
As CPS' debt payments have grown, the district has devoted an increasing amount of its per-pupil state education funding to paying off bonds. The school district began borrowing against its...
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Another ratings agency downgrades CPS to junk status
All three major debt rating agencies now rate Chicago Public Schools' bonds as "junk." Standard & Poor's downgraded the district's debt late Friday, citing a precarious budget plan for the...
CPS’ $5.7 billion spending proposal relies on $480 million from Springfield
Chicago Public Schools unveiled a budget Monday meant to pressure Gov. Bruce Rauner and state lawmakers into providing nearly a half-billion dollars in pension relief, a gambit school officials warn...
Investors see golden opportunity in Chicago’s budget woes
Mayor Rahm Emanuel has warned Chicago homeowners that property tax bills could "explode" without budget relief from Springfield. The Chicago Public Schools are facing massive budget cuts that would force...
CPS considers more than $1 billion in long-term borrowing
Faced with an increasingly burdensome debt load and a shortage of cash, Chicago Public Schools is seeking permission to issue more than $1 billion in long-term bonds. The school board...
Rahm Emanuel tries to get it right on tumultuous schools, again
Chicago Public Schools, a generation ago condemned as the worst in the nation, was hailed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel this week as "leading the country in urban school systems on...
Cash-strapped Chicago borrows at rates approaching 8 percent
Mayor Rahm Emanuel's decision to borrow for costs such as debt payments, bank fees and penalty payments on old deals gone bad — the kind of bills cities typically pay...
Chicago sells $745M in taxable bonds to manage debt burden
Mayor Rahm Emanuel's plan to manage the city's burdensome liabilities with more borrowing is moving forward. The city on Wednesday sold $745 million worth of taxable bonds to more than...
Cash-crunched Chicago schools missed chance to file claim against banks
Investment banks this spring paid $2 million to the city of Houston to settle claims they did not sufficiently warn city officials about the risks of the auction-rate bond market...
Chicago Public Schools’ budgets spend $500 million district doesn’t have
Chicago Public Schools on Monday unveiled school spending plans that rely on a half-billion dollars more than the district has on hand — an approach the head of the city's...