Mayor Brandon Johnson creates post for Chicago's first chief homelessness officer

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Mayor Brandon Johnson has signed an executive order establishing the city's first chief homelessness officer at City Hall.

Johnson said the new position in the mayor's cabinet would be tasked with coordinating efforts across city departments to provide shelter for all people.

According to data from this summer, there are about 68,000 homeless people in Chicago.

The move comes as the city moved a step closer Wednesday to approving Johnson's proposal to increase the real estate transfer task on sales of million-dollar properties, in an effort to create a dedicated funding stream to fight homelessness.

The so-called Bring Chicago Home Ordinance would create a tired system for the real estate transfer tax for property sales in Chicago:

• The transfer tax for properties valued at less than $1 million would drop from 0.75% to 0.60%.
• Properties sold for between $1 million and $1.5 million would pay a 2% transfer tax, nearly triple the current rate.
• Properties sold for $1.5 million or more would pay a 3% transfer tax, four times the current rate.

In order to approve the real estate transfer tax increase, the City Council must vote to approve a binding voter referendum on the ballot during the March 2024 primary elections. If voters approve the referendum, the City Council would then have to approve an ordinance setting up the new tax rates and creating a special fund to finance homelessness prevention programs.

Johnson's office has said the ordinance would lower the real estate transfer tax for 95% of homeowners, while increasing the tax on more expensive buildings, creating approximately $100 million in annual revenue for efforts to combat homelessness.

Critics have said the tax plan would result in landlords increasing rents on tenants, limit future development, and hurt downtown commercial property owners still struggling to fill vacant office spaces in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.