Budget

Annual Budget

Every year, the MWRD creates and shares a full financial plan for the budget year. The budget year starts on January 1 and ends on December 31. Following the laws of Illinois, the MWRD maintains a balanced budget and regularly keeps track of the money coming in and going out. It has a long history of responsible financial management and is committed to providing taxpayer value to the residents of Cook County.

Guided by the Strategic Plan , elements of the plan are incorporated throughout the budget document. The 2027 Budget is a $1.5 billion fiscally responsible spending plan that invests in public infrastructure and considers the long-term environmental and financial implications of permit compliance. It also receives federal funding to address flooding and optimizes critical asset life cycles through the Capital Improvement Program.

New for 2027 budget, the MWRD is introducing an interactive online budget dashboard.

Overview

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District provides stormwater management and water treatment to the communities served.

Here are some of the areas where the budget is applied during the fiscal year:

Students at Chicago public school participate in a planting event at an MWRD-funded green infrastructure installation

Illinois Communities Served

129 communities
5.19 million people
882.1 square miles

O'Brien Water Reclamation Plant serves a 143 square mile area in northeast Cook County

Wastewater Treatment

An average of 1.2 billion gallons treated every day
Treatment capacity of over 2.0 billion gallons per day

Laboratory Analysis

The MWRD projects 483,700 laboratory analyses in 2027 to monitor liquid and solids process trains to improve operations and the quality of effluents and biosolids

Thornton Composite TARP Reservoir has a capacity of 7.9 billion gallons and serves the Calumet region

Infrastructure

Seven water reclamation plants
560 miles of intercepting sewers and force mains
23 pumping stations
34 stormwater detention reservoirs
Three Tunnel and Reservoir Plan reservoirs
Controls 76.1 miles of navigable waterways

North Shore Channel Waterway Control Structures

2027 Taxes and Levies

The tax rate is the amount used to calculate individual tax bills, while the tax levy is the total revenue the MWRD needs to meet its budgetary requirements. The levy is derived by applying the tax rate to the total taxable base.

2027 Tax Rate:
33.8 cents per $100 of assessed property
value
2027 Tax Levy:
$782.4 million
2027 Estimated District Tax:
$103.09 for a $100,000 home

2027 Budget

To request additional information, please contact Irene Green, Budget Officer

Call: 312-751-6547
Mail: 100 East Erie Street, Chicago, IL 60611-3154

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago