WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#GovWaste–Today, Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) named Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) its November 2025 Porker of the Month for demanding nearly $500 million in new taxes that would push Chicago even further into economic freefall.
This Thanksgiving, Mayor Johnson is not giving Chicago taxpayers anything to be thankful for. Instead of addressing the Windy City’s $1.2 billion budget deficit by cutting wasteful spending, he is doubling down on taxing everything in sight. Chicago already has the highest sales tax of any city in the U.S. but that is not enough as Mayor Johnson’s fiscal year 2026 budget proposal includes hefty new taxes. They include a new $21 per employee head tax on the largest 3 percent of businesses operating in Chicago, a 27 percent increase in the cloud software tax, and a rideshare tax that will hurt commuters and service workers. Mayor Johnson also wants the first-ever tax on social media companies, a new tax for online sports betting, and a tripling of the tax on docking private boats. The new taxes will push even more people out of Chicago, hastening the date on which it will be overtaken by Houston as the nation’s third-largest city.
CAGW President Tom Schatz said, “Mayor Johnson’s outrageous new tax plan and failure to address longstanding bureaucratic mismanagement is a masterclass in how to accelerate economic decline, chase away investment, and punish job creators. It is no surprise that his approval rating is only 31 percent, and businesses and families want to leave the city as quickly as possible. For trying to plug Chicago’s massive budget hole by taxing consumers, innovators, entrepreneurs, and employers instead of cutting spending, Mayor Johnson was an easy choice for November 2025 Porker of the Month.”
Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government. For more than two decades, Porker of the Month is a dubious honor given to lawmakers and government officials who have shown a blatant disregard for the taxpayers.
Contacts
Alexandra Abrams (202) 467-5310
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