Debt collection is handled fairly, effectively, city comptroller says

As city comptroller and head of the Department of Finance, I want to reassure Chicagoans that we manage debt collection from city employees through an organized, equitable and effective process.

The actual collectible debt owed by these employees is about $8 million. This is roughly half of the figure reported by the Sun-Times  earlier this month and represents just 0.05% of the city’s $17 billion budget.

Our oversight begins at the point of hire. Incoming city and Chicago Park District employees must undergo a debt check; any outstanding balances must be cleared or placed on a payment plan before a formal offer of employment is extended.

For current city and sister agency employees, the Department of Finance provides a list of individuals with outstanding debt to the city three times a year, in January,  April and September. These employees are provided in writing the amount owed, along with options to extinguish the debt within 30 days of receiving the notice.

The administration of Mayor Brandon Johnson is committed to the financial well-being of all Chicagoans, including our dedicated public servants. To support this goal, the city offers income-based repayment options through programs such as Clear Path Relief and Utility Billing Relief.

For traffic-related debt, residents can access flexible online payment plans spanning 24 to 60 months, with down payments as low as $25. Employees may also resolve debts through payroll deduction or the city’s payment portal.

If an employee is unable to settle their debt within the allotted window, he or she face a disciplinary hearing which may result in court-ordered wage garnishment. Per state law, garnishment is capped at 25% of a paycheck to prevent undue financial strain.

While the city cannot legally compel agencies like the Chicago Transit Authority or Chicago Public Schools to adopt every internal collection practice, we are working toward greater uniformity across all agencies.

Furthermore, the 2026 budget invests in technology to aggregate individual debts into a single view, along with stored payment information. This will lead to efficiency and better collection results.

This modernization reflects the Department of Finance’s ongoing commitment to improving policies and technology while ensuring fair, equitable practices. Chicagoans can be assured the city remains dedicated to balancing fiscal responsibility with the financial well-being of its workforce.

City Comptroller Michael Belsky

Highlighting foster care

May is National Foster Care Month. It is a time to thank foster parents, raise awareness and remind our communities about the needs of children and families in care.

As vice president and chief operating officer of Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois, I see every day the pain of family separation, the resilience families carry and the progress that is possible when parents are met with accountability, partnership and meaningful support. Foster care is meant to protect children in times of crisis while families work toward a safe path home.

Research shows that children do best when they can safely return home to the people and relationships that know them best. Returning home helps preserve family bonds, reduce the trauma of being apart and give families the opportunity to heal and move forward together.

For that to happen, families need partnership, support and the opportunity to use their voice, strengths and skills to address the circumstances that led them into care. With shared expectations, practical support and people who believe change is possible, families can build on their strengths, rebuild trust and make real progress.

Foster parents play a significant and meaningful role in that journey. They provide care and compassion during a difficult time in a child’s life, helping children feel safe and supported while partnering with families and caseworkers as parents work toward lasting change.

There remains a significant need for foster parents in Illinois and across the country. We need caring individuals who are willing to open their homes, provide stability and stand beside children during times of transition.

This National Foster Care Month, I urge readers to learn more about fostering and the many ways to help. You can help by becoming a foster parent, serving as a mentor or support system, or simply spreading awareness. Every child deserves care, connection and a place to belong.

LaTasha Roberson-Guifarro, vice president and chief operating officer, Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois

Golden Apple teachers can help rethink report cards

Chicago Public Schools teacher Paige Passman suggested in her recent op-ed that a different method of communication should be established to share information about a student’s accomplishments with their parents and/or guardians.

Who should be part of the discussions that would lead to a "better" report card?

Leaders from the U.S. Department of Education? Illinois State Board of Education? The CPS central office? Chicago Board of Education? Chicago Principals & Administrators Association? Chicago Teachers Union? Local School Councils? Or teachers in our classrooms?

Where would Chicago find a group of teachers who have been recognized by their peers for providing an excellent education for their students?

The Golden Apple Foundation has identified the 10 "best" classroom teachers for each of the past 40 years. An academy of 400 identified experts in classroom teaching.

In addition to the “top 10,” the foundation also recognizes many more “teachers of distinction."

That “teachers of distinction” are also “frontline” classroom teachers.

With their years of educational experience, Golden Apple-recognized teachers would be ideal candidates to help in the effort of designing a "better report card" for public school students.

Murray. K. Fisher, retired CPS teacher, Golden Apple Class of 2001, Morton Grove

Student input essential in performance reviews

Paige Passman's op-ed advocated reforms in the way student learning is reported to parents and guardians. Her suggestions, if enacted, would constitute a definite improvement over current practices.

Nevertheless, the most important potential reform was not mentioned: the need to put the student at the center of the reporting process. Students should be present at parent-teacher conferences and present their work, demonstrating what they have achieved. Ideally, the student portfolio would replace the report card.

The portfolio system accents the positive and dispenses with the teacher talk that would dominate conferences geared to academic standards. It regards students as creators of their own learning.

Bert Rice, Edgewater

Teens need boundaries, parental control

Mayor Brandon Johnson claims that if youth had more access to activities, they wouldn’t be engaged in violence during their free time. Anyone who has worked with teens or parented teens knows this is questionable at best.

We’ve all seen low attendance at teen events sponsored by churches, libraries, community centers and schools. Why? Teens want autonomy, privacy and a separation from adults. Teens want to plan their own activities and avoid events sanctioned by adults.

Parents notice that the family plans previously well-received are suddenly met with eye-rolls. Let's face it. A family trip to an amusement park can’t match the allure of spending time with peers without adults.

This is nothing new to parents or anyone with a basic grasp of child and youth development. Teen years are a time of independent growth and fierce connections with peers while swinging wildly from childhood to adulthood.

During this period, teens need, and crave, boundaries. Boundaries are different for each teenager and family, so new freedoms and responsibilities should be doled out according to what the teen can handle. To be effective, parents must know their child and their friends, know when their child is ready for a little more freedom and be able to assume the responsibility that goes with it, i.e. set boundaries appropriate for their children and consistently enforce them. In a nutshell, parents should be setting and enforcing curfews, so the city doesn’t have to.

Teens are welcome to hang out at the beach, play volleyball, ride bikes, go to the Art Institute, splash at the dynamic "faces" Crown Fountain or attend a free concert at Millennium Park. They don’t need more activities. They need more appropriate boundaries and parental supervision.

We need more parents to lean into their roles as gatekeepers and rule makers. We also need a mayor who stops making excuses when laws are broken.

Experts in child development have made it clear that this is the way to promote healthy growth and development in young people. Parents who care about the safety and development of their youth create boundaries and consequences when teens stray from those parameters.

Greta Connor, Evanston

Building bridges

In the article on Chicago bridges, Sun-Times reporter David Struett mentions that the Lake Street Bridge won't reopen until 2028 if rehab efforts run on schedule.

It took over three years, in the 1930s, to build the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, formerly known as the Triborough Bridge, in New York City. Construction of the Golden Gate Bridge took just over four years, starting on Jan. 5, 1933. and finishing on May 1937. The George Washington Bridge also took four years to build between 1927 and 1931.

Compare the sizes of those three projects with the Lake Street Bridge, and you have to ask: Why does it take so much longer for a very small bridge to be rebuilt?

Robert Hart, Lincoln Park

‘Leaf’ it to Neil Steinberg

Great column on Arbor Day by Neil Steinberg. We need more trees everywhere. Not to diminish other celebrations, but the Earth gets a measly one day while others get a week or a month. When I drive into the city from DeKalb along Interstate 88, there are long stretches where there is absolutely nothing to see. There are many stretches on other interstates that are the same. I would think conservationists would be all over that and line the center islands and cloverleafs with trees — especially in areas that already have guardrails in place so the excuse of being a driving hazard is diminished.

Also, thanks to Neil also for the education on the ginkgo biloba. It begs the question: Who knew? Besides Neil, of course. At any rate, their secret is out. And now that it is, it begs another question: How long before someone in the Republican party gets wind of this and declares the gingko biloba "woke" and campaigns on removing all of them from the planet?

John Farrell, DeKalb

Enjoying winding down

In response to reader Scott T. Thompson's letter on retirement, mine is much different. I love retirement. Retirement has slowed things down to a snail's crawl. I have worked since I was 16. Sometimes two jobs. Monday through Friday. Maybe a Saturday, sometimes a Sunday. The time I wasn't working was spent on errands and chores. Another week came quickly.

Now, things don't seem so urgent. Time seems to be at a standstill. Errands are few. Chores for Saturday can be put off to Sunday, sometimes Monday. Most of the time, indefinitely. Honestly, I don't care if they ever get done. But, they will. I am a homebody. I have no interest in travel. I embrace loneliness. I like things done my way and at my pace. If I do want to do something, it's a better experience if I'm alone. There's a minority who will understand.

I do fill my days with something I've always dreaded: Exercise four days a week. The other three days are for recovery and maybe a long walk. Yes, there are casino runs on occasion, but it's entertainment that I can afford. I've earned this peaceful time. I feel great. I'm eating healthier. I think I'm in my 20s again. Unfortunately, I'll be 70 this year. Time isn't going fast for me in retirement. Death is just getting closer.

Paul Koehler, Rogers Park