Chicago is in the midst of a $30 billion pension crisis for police and firemen that Mayor Rahm Emanuel inherited from his predecessor, Richard Daley. The crisis has reached a tipping point, which has forced Emanuel to come up with a slew of new taxes, including a whopping $588 million dollar property tax increase.  But that's just a beginning. "Boot fees" on illegally parked cars are going up, as are fines for failure to remove snow. And most controversial of all - a first ever garbage collection fee that could be a precursor to privatizing garbage collection. For the city's elected alderman, all of this is proving to be hard to swallow. These aren't taxes on fee increases on the rich. The tax increases will affect every homeowner, every business, and every citizen in the city. Chicago Sun Times: On Monday, the Budget Committee will take up the mayor’s $7.8 billion budget — with 431 more “full-time-equivalent employees”...(Read Full Post)