Photo: Dennisyerger84 · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Chicago Heights run?
Chicago Heights’ city government spent $49 million on day-to-day services in the year to April 30, 2024, about $1,853 per resident. Water and other utilities ($17.1 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Chicago Heights is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,853 per resident a year, or $5.08 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 34%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
No comparison for Chicago Heights yet
The fair comparison uses 2022, the last year the Census Bureau counted every government (later years are a sample). Chicago Heights’ 2022 figures are a Census estimate (it reported none of its 2022 dollars), so it has no like-for-like peer figure. It reported 2024; the next full count is 2027.
How Town Hall compares budgets →Day-to-day spending is up 1% since 2023
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Chicago Heights reported to the Census Bureau. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.
Day-to-day spending by fiscal year
Per resident: 2023: $1,801 · 2024: $1,853.
full-time in March 2025, up from 208 in 2022. Both are Census estimates.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $4,248 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 2.64% of the home’s value, vs 2.01% across Illinois.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Chicago Heights’ rate.
Can I afford it? →The median bill homeowners report to the Census survey (bills of $10,000+ are reported as “$10,000+”). The effective rate is that bill ÷ the median home value: a rough guide, not the official tax rate.
Tax bills are one input to Chicago Heights’ Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Chicago Heights →
Who’s in charge in Chicago Heights
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Chicago Heights’ meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on chicagoheights.net ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 121 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (26,465).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2025
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
Bloom Township High School District 206
Chicago Heights’ high school district, shared with Crete Township, Crete, Ford Heights, Sauk Village, South Chicago Heights and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $22,240 per pupil, $10,476 goes to the classroom (teachers, aides, supplies); the rest to buses, buildings, counselors and administration. Building projects and debt payments aren’t in the per-pupil figure.
Illinois districts overall: 52% local, 38% state, 10% federal.
Chicago Heights School District 170 · $23,476 per pupil
Ford Heights School District 169 · $29,639 per pupil
Brookwood School District 167 · $21,043 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Chicago Heights’ votes are counted by county
Illinois reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Chicago Heights alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Cook County’s results.
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat68.9%1,447,821 votes
Donald J TrumpRepublican27.8%583,852 votesOthers: 3.3% (70,005 votes).
Most votes in Cook County: Kamala D Harris
Illinois: Harris 54.4%, Trump 43.5%
100% of Chicago Heights lies in Cook County. Every 2024 race in Cook County is on the county’s page.
Cook County’s 2024 results →Official 2024 general election returns, as certified (MIT Election Data + Science Lab). Percentages are of votes for candidates; blank and spoiled ballots aren’t counted. Candidates are listed by votes, and party colors are neutral on purpose.
Portraits: Kamala D Harris: official vice-presidential portrait, Lawrence Jackson, The White House, 2021; Donald J Trump: official portrait, Shealah Craighead, The White House, 2017. All are U.S. government works in the public domain. A race shows photos only when every candidate has an official portrait; otherwise every candidate in it gets initials.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Chicago Heights.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: chicagoheights.net ↗
- 2Illinois HouseChicago Heights is split between 2 districts
- 3Illinois SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Illinois
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Chicago Heights compares with the towns next door
Chicago Heights’ 2022 figures are a Census estimate, so it isn’t placed among them. Neighbors that reported 2022 spent $949 to $1,589 per resident. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Steger | $949 | $3,560 |
| South Chicago Heights | $1,408 | $2,971 |
| Flossmoor | $1,488 | $10,000+ |
| Olympia Fields | $1,589 | $9,686 |
| Park Forest | $1,589 | $4,608 |
| Glenwood | estimate | $5,843 |
| Chicago Heights | estimate | $4,248 |
Day-to-day spending in 2022, the last year every government was counted, for governments that reported it; hospital and utilities left out. Tax bill: the typical homeowner’s bill (Census ACS, 2020–24).
Reach Chicago Heights’ government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Chicago Heights’ government
How much does Chicago Heights spend per resident?
About $1,853 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to April 30, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau.
What is the property tax rate in Chicago Heights?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $4,248 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 2.64% of the typical home’s value, vs 2.01% across Illinois. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see chicagoheights.net.
Who runs Chicago Heights’ government?
See chicagoheights.net for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Chicago Heights yet.
How did Chicago Heights vote in 2024?
Illinois counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Chicago Heights alone. Cook County, where 100% of Chicago Heights lies, voted Harris 68.9%, Trump 27.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Chicago Heights?
218 full-time and 22 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $1.8M (about $22.0M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Chicago Heights in the state legislature?
Chicago Heights is split among 2 State House districts and 2 State Senate districts, so your address decides. The Illinois Legislature’s lookup finds yours. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Chicago Heights’ government
Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.
Budget and staff: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Governments (2022, every government) and Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (2023–24, a sample) and the Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll; day-to-day spending is current operations, with hospitals, utilities and airports apart. School district: Census school finance survey, 2023–24. Property tax: Census American Community Survey, 2020–24. Elections: official 2024 returns via the MIT Election Data + Science Lab; turnout uses Census citizen voting-age population (CVAP, 2020–24). Officials: Open States, names shown only with a current term (checked October 9, 2026). Districts: Census Bureau (119th Congress, 2024 state districts); legislators: Open States and congress-legislators. How Town Hall works →