CHICAGO _ Longtime Chicago Alderman Edward Burke will step down from the powerful position of City Council Finance Committee chairman after being charged Thursday with attempted extortion, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced Friday morning.
"I have spoken with Alderman Ed Burke, who agreed that the best course of action is for him to resign as chairman of the Committee on Finance," Emanuel said in a statement. "Because of his affection for the city, deep respect for the institution of City Council and the needs of his constituents, Alderman Burke took the appropriate step to put the interests of the city above all else."
Unlike many other aldermen and candidates for mayor, Emanuel was complimentary of Burke in his statement and did not condemn the 51-year alderman's alleged actions as outlined in a federal complaint unsealed Thursday. Emanuel announced that his City Council floor leader, Alderman Patrick O'Connor, 40th, would take over the Finance Committee.
Burke, 14th Ward alderman, was charged by federal authorities with attempting to extort the owners of a Burger King franchise in his ward. Burke allegedly sought tax business for his private law firm and a campaign contribution in connection with permits the restaurant owners needed for their renovation.
The Chicago Tribune reported Thursday that the $10,000 in contributions authorities alleged Burke solicited illegally was intended for Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who is running for mayor. Preckwinkle has said she returned the money while the federal complaint states the candidate who received the money kept $5,600.
Emanuel spoke with Burke about stepping down as chairman late Thursday afternoon, a source familiar with the conversation confirmed. That's not long after the veteran alderman turned himself in to federal prosecutors at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in the Loop before appearing before a magistrate judge in a packed courtroom on the building's 17th floor.
Burke's family has controlled the 14th Ward since 1965. As a young police officer, Burke won election as Democratic committeeman for the ward in July 1968 after his father, Alderman Joseph P. Burke, died of lung cancer while in office. The following year, Burke won election as alderman and has held the post ever since, rising from a young ward heeler to one of the most powerful council members the city has ever seen.
Burke first became Finance Committee chairman in 1983. In the decades since, he has consolidated a huge amount of control within the committee, handling the workers' compensation program and Police Department settlements, along with just about any other high-profile proposals that impact the city's bottom line.
It's not unusual for Burke to frequently lock down proposed ordinances in his committee, deciding how and when to bring forth for hearings those he favors while leaving others to wither on the vine. Burke has an encyclopedic knowledge of City Council rules, and often outfoxes aldermen trying to push proposals he doesn't like by citing some guideline they've failed to heed.
In O'Connor, Emanuel will have a veteran North Side alderman and close ally taking over the helm of the powerful Finance Committee. O'Connor was selected because he is the vice chair of the committee and council rules stipulate that alderman takes over in the case of a resignation by the chair, according to the mayor's office.
For Emanuel, having O'Connor in charge of Finance is also a best-case scenario, as the outgoing mayor tries to complete a series of high-profile projects before leaving office in May. Emanuel has discussed setting up the framework for a controversial pension borrowing program, and wants to establish special property tax districts to help pay for massive developments in high-profile properties along the Chicago River and in the South Loop.
O'Connor has served on the council since 1983, making him the second most senior member of the body, and he's well-positioned to take over the difficult task of running Finance. But some mayoral opponents on the City Council are likely to grumble about the job going to such a close mayoral confidant at a time they want more transparency and collaboration with the mayor's office.
Some also will see it as an opportunity to finally open up a corner of the city's operations that Burke has cloaked with secrecy for decades.
North Side Alderman Ameya Pawar, 47th, who's running for city treasurer, said Emanuel should also take workers compensation out of the Finance Committee, a move Pawar and other progressives have been backing for some time.
"Stripping Ed Burke of the Finance Committee is a step forward, but it doesn't go far enough," Pawar said in a statement. "The mayor should take immediate action to remove the administration of workers compensation from the Finance Committee and shine sunlight on this $100 million fund that Ed Burke has long controlled with zero oversight."
