School Will End 20 Days Early Without More Money From The State, CPS Warns

The fiscal crisis for CPS began in November, when Rauner veoted a bill that would have given Chicago schools an additional $215 million to help cover CPS pension obligations.

Rauner blamed Illinois Senate President John Cullerton for torpedoing a compromise inked last June that allowed schools to open in September. Part of that deal promised more money for Chicago schools in return for statewide “pension reform,” a long-held goal of the governor.

CPS must pay its employees’ pension fund $721 million by June 30.

CPS would save $91 million by ending school June 1 instead of June 20 and save another $5 million by canceling summer school for all students except those in high school, according to its court filing.

Even with the additional state money, CPS will “have to borrow hundreds of millions” to pay its bills, according to the court filing. Claypool declined to say how much the district will have to borrow.

Last month, Claypool ordered four unpaid furlough days for all CPS employees to save $35 million. Earlier this month, Claypool cut $5 million by canceling professional development events for its central office staff and slashed charter school budgets by $15 million by the end of the year, officials said.

Claypool cut another $31 million by freezing a portion of schools’ discretionary funds, which can be used to purchase textbooks and technology as well as to pay for after-school programs, field trips and hourly staff.

Those cuts leave a deficit of $129 million, officials said.

In a message to legislators, Rauner said in November that he did not sign the school funding bill because it would amount to a “bailout” for CPS.

Cullerton denied breaking the agreement and said he was willing to continue working on pension reform with the governor.

Rauner and Speaker of the House Michael Madigan have been locked in a bitter fight over the Illinois budget.

The governor wants lawmakers to adopt his agenda, which he says will spur business growth in Illinois as part of a budget agreement. Democrats have refused, and the impasse has lasted nearly two years.

Motion for Preliminary Injunction by Ariel Cheung on Scribd