Mayor-Elect Lori Lightfoot Reveals Recommendations On City Government Changes

CHICAGO (CBS)-- Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot will be sworn in on Monday.

On Friday, she revealed her transition team's recommendations on changing city government.

The mayor-elect, whose campaign slogan was "bring in the light," is promising to make government more open and transparent.

While City Council meetings have long been televised on cable, Lightfoot insists council committee meetings should be as well.

"I've heard it's going to cost too much, we got to wire the room, do this do that," She said. "I said 'fine, get a tripod, put an iPad on there and let's go'. People need to see what their legislatures are doing."

Lightfoot said earlier reports that she was limiting her attack on aldermanic prerogative to licenses and permits is wrong. She's going after their absolute control of zoning, too.

"I hear it every single day that aldermanic prerogative, and unchecked veto right, hurts Chicago, hurts Chicagoans," she said. "Small businesses, people in neighborhoods, chief execs of large corporations, it's a corrosive problem and we have to change it."

Lightfoot also promises to end water-shutoffs to homes, due to long term non-payment of bills.

"Water is a basic, basic human right, if you're turning off water you are effectively evicting people and we know that disproportionately affects low income, people of color who are going to be shut off from water services," Lightfoot said.

Amid all the good cheer over government reform, Lightfoot gave a warning.

She said City Hall's red ink is deeper than Mayor Emanuel reported.

"It's not $700 million; it's worse than that," She said. "I'm not sure why they choose to put that number out because its not accurate."

This is something Chicagoans have heard from Mayor Emanuel and Gov. JB Pritzker when they started in office.

Lightfoot's proposal for the City Council committee leadership structure includes:

• Ald. Scott Waguespack (32) as chair of the Committee on Finance
• Ald. Pat Dowell (3) as chair of the Committee on Budget and Government Operations
• Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36) as chair of the Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development
• Ald. Tom Tunney (44) as chair of the Committee on Zoning, Landmarks and Building Standards
• Ald. Susan Sadlowski Garza (10) as chair of the Committee on Workforce Development
• Ald. Howard Brookins (21) as chair of the Committee on Transportation and Public Way
• Ald. Michelle Harris (8) as chair of the Committee on Committees and Rules
• Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. (27) as chair of the Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety
• Ald. Nicholas Sposato (38) as chair of the Committee on Special Events, Cultural Affairs and Recreation
• Ald. Michael Scott, Jr. (24) as chair of the Committee on Education and Child Development
• Ald. Matthew O'Shea (19) as the chair of Committee on Aviation
• Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29) as the chair of the Committee on Public Safety
• Ald. Harry Osterman (48) as the chair of the Committee on Housing and Real Estate
• Ald. Roderick T. Sawyer (6) as the chair of the Committee on Health and Human Relations (formerly the Committee on Human Relations)
• Ald. George Cárdenas (12) as chair of the Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy (formerly Committee on Health and Environmental Protection)
• Ald. Emma Mitts (37) as chair of the Committee on License and Consumer Protection

According to the Lighfoot administration, the proposal also includes changes to the committee structure, including the creation of a new Committee on Ethics and Good Governance with Ald. Michele Smith as chair, a Committee of Public Health and Human Relations and a Committee on Environment and Energy.