Back-and-forth budget talks between Mayor Brandon Johnson's office and his opponents on the City Council continued Wednesday afternoon at Chicago City Hall with no resolution in sight.

The City Council Budget Committee met on Wednesday afternoon to debate the spending side of an alternative budget plan backed by about two dozen alders, in hopes of passing a budget before the end of the year and avoiding an unprecedented city government shutdown.

Mayor Brandon Johnson's budget team spent the afternoon presenting criticizing the alternative budget crafted by the mayor's opponents, effectively telling them their math doesn't math, claiming their plan would leave a $163 million shortfall.

It seems neither side is close to agreeing that the other has a balanced budget proposal on the table.

On Tuesday, the Finance Committee advanced the alternative budget plan pitched by the mayor's opponents.

Their spending plan would rely on an increase in the city's plastic bag tax; overhauling the tax on off-premise liquor sales; legalizing video gambling terminals in Chicago; and opening up new advertising opportunities, such as naming rights for bridge houses along the Chicago River, selling banners on light poles, and placing ads on city vehicles.

The alternative budget also would maintain funding levels for youth jobs that the mayor originally proposed, and would reduce the city's legal costs by relying more on city lawyers rather than private firms.

Their plan eliminated a garbage collection fee increase the mayor had vowed to veto, while also eliminating his proposal to revive the city's corporate head tax.

Johnson's latest proposal for the head tax would charge businesses with 500 or more employees $33 per employee per month, but the mayor's opponents said any form of a head tax – which was eliminated in 2014 – is a no-go.

When the Budget Committee met on Wednesday to take up the spending side of the alternative budget plan, the mayor's budget team heavily criticized that plan with a multi-slide presentation saying aldermen's math doesn't add up. 

Budget Director Annette Guzman said the alternative budget would leave a $163 million budget gap in 2026, but the mayor's critics pushed back, insisting their budget plan is balanced.

"We think our numbers are sound. I think they went upstairs and said this doesn't fit our narrative," Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) said.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) called the presentation from the mayor's budget team a "dog and pony show."

"Who's checking the administration's math?" Reilly said. "This budget team's credibility has fallen off a cliff in the last week, and so we want to make sure that responsible financial experts get a chance to check their math. Because the data has been hidden from this council as long as it has, it really doesn't show any good faith here."

The mayor's critics said their budget plan includes $46.6 million in spending cuts and other efficiencies, but the mayor's budget team estimated their proposals would save only $6 million, claiming many of their proposals already were in the mayor's budget plan, or are simply not feasible.

Aldermen also estimated $6.8 million in new revenue in 2026 from legalizing video gambling, but the mayor's budget team claimed that move would result in a loss of $3 million next year, because it would force the city to lose out on $4 million payment from Bally's casino, and only a small fraction of businesses who apply for a video gaming license would actually get approved in 2026.

In proposing to increase the city's plastic bag tax from 10 cents to 15 cents per bag, aldermen estimated $8.7 million in new revenue, while the mayor's budget team claimed that move would generate only $5.2 million, due to a likely drop in shoppers using plastic bags.

The alternative budget estimated $6 million in new revenue from a new 1.5 tax on off-premise liquor sales, replacing the current volume-based tax, with different rates for beer, wine, and spirits. However, the mayor's budget team estimated that move would actually result in a $4.2 million loss for the city.

The biggest sticking point for the mayor's budget team was aldermen's proposal to bring in $89.6 million from selling some debt owed to the city for unpaid fines and fees. Johnson's aides said the plan is simply not feasible and wouldn't generate actual money from the city, claiming there is no realistic way to find investors to buy debt for things like unpaid parking tickets when the city has no authority to seize vehicles or place liens on property for such debt.

The mayor's team also cast doubt on the aldermen's plan to bring in an estimated $6 million by allowing "augmented reality advertising" on city property in games or apps like "Pokemon Go." Johnson's aides said, because no other cities have allowed such advertising, it would require lengthy research for the city to set up a legal framework for such a proposal, making it virtually impossible for the city to make any money from such a venture next year.

While Johnson has criticized his opponents' budget plan, he has not expressly stated if he would veto it should the City Council pass it. 

Ald. Antony Beale (9th) called on the mayor's budget team to sit down with the aldermen's financial advisors to review their budget plan together.

"We disagree with 99.9% of your assessment, because it looks like based on your proposal the only numbers that you agree with are the mayor's numbers," he said.

The mayor and City Council have until Dec. 30 to pass a budget plan for 2026. Aldermen have scheduled five City Council meetings between Thursday and Christmas Eve in hopes of passing a budget before Christmas.

The Budget Committee also has scheduled two more meetings for Saturday and Monday, and the Finance Committee has scheduled another meeting for Monday, leaving those panels room to vote on further changes to the budget should the mayor and his critics be able to agree on a compromise.

If they do pass their budget plan over the mayor's objections, Johnson's critics don't have the 34 votes they would need to override a potential veto, but said they're getting closer. It's unclear how soon they plan to call for a full City Council vote on their plan.