Might Chicago taxpayers be shelling out more money for garbage removal, alcohol sales, and property taxes? With the city facing a $1.15 billion budget shortfall for 2026, lots of options are on the table for Mayor Brandon Johnson's budget team as he prepares to present a spending plan to the City Council next month.

A task force formed by the mayor has released a report detailing a laundry list of ideas for cutting spending and raising new revenue.

In all, the coalition of civic and business leaders made roughly 90 recommendations for addressing the city's budget deficit.

While the big issues include skyrocketing pension costs and growing salaries for thousands of city workers, there are other smaller issues that could impact Chicagoans' pocketbooks in 2026.

The task force's report found using more police drones to fight crime could save the city $400,000 a year.

Diverting chronic health calls from 911 centers to telehealth alternatives at area hospitals could save $2.5 million a year.

Charging patients for ambulance calls that result in on-site treatment rather than taking someone to the hospital could generate $900,000 a year.

Raising garbage fees from the current $9.50 per month could generate between $19 and $296 million a year.

Those are just some of the ideas pitched to the Johnson administration by the Chicago Financial Future Task Force for closing the city's $1.15 billion budget gap.

Civic Federation President Joe Ferguson said increased city fees create one type of problem.

"We are going to have a higher rate of non-collection, because people are up against it," he said.

And solutions like additional police drones likely save money and better utilize resources, but raise other questions.

"We are talking surveillance. We are talking First Amendment rights. We are talking storage of data," he aid.

One other idea pitched by the group: tie annual increases in Chicago's property tax levy to the rate of inflation, which could raise $56 million a year.

However, Mayor Brandon Johnson opposes that proposal, after the City Council last year unanimously rejected his proposal for a $300 million property tax hike in the face of a nearly $1 billion budget deficit.

"I don't agree with that particular proposal," Johnson said on Wednesday.

He has yet to weigh in the other ideas. If he includes any of them in his budget plan, he would need to win approval from the City Council before the end of the year, when the budget must be finished.

Reducing the number of city employees on the payroll is also on the table, along with unpaid furlough days for existing employees.

"Furloughs are a means of avoiding firings, and so we have a mayor who comes from labor who actually should be able to convene labor to say, 'Nope, this time actually is different,'" Ferguson said. "Why is this time different? This is it. This. is. it. We are at the gates."

And the elephant in the room is skyrocketing pension costs the city is paying out in huge numbers with less and less help from Springfield and likely no help from Washington, D.C.

"The federal government is not coming to anyone's rescue. That we know for sure," Ferguson said.

In total, the task force's report outlines 45 cost-saving measures and 39 revenue proposals.

The mayor's budget proposal for next year is expected in about a month. City Council must approve a balanced budget by Dec. 31.

Mayor Brandon Johnson's task force outlines menu of options for filling $1.15 billion budget gap