West Cook News

The National Association of Counties (NACo) has honored Cook County with 54 achievement awards recognizing innovative, effective county government programs that strengthen services for residents.

“These awards acknowledge the initiatives we have undertaken to ensure that our residents receive vital services and have the opportunity to thrive in our community,” said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. “This record number of awards recognizes our dedicated County employees who launch these critical programs and uplifts Cook County as a national leader.”

The 2024 awards also include one “Best in Category” recognition for Cook County Health’s “Addressing Food Insecurity among Medicaid Members: FoodCare by CountyCare initiative.” As part of a broader health plan strategy to address social drivers of health including food insecurity, CountyCare Health Plan developed the FoodCare program, a nutrition program to improve the health and quality of life of CountyCare members. FoodCare is a no-cost holistic program intended to drive community involvement, address member food insecurity and manage diet-related disease prevalence.

The Cook County Office of the President won for its Medical Debt Relief program. Leveraging American Rescue Plan investments, President Toni Preckwinkle committed to creating and implementing the first-ever government-funded medical debt relief program. The innovative $12 million program will eventually retire an estimated $1 billion in medical debt on behalf of Cook County residents. This initiative will improve the health, wellness, and financial stability of the residents involved.

The Office of the President also won for the Property Tax (PTAX) Reform Group, which is focused on providing operational updates and advancing system reforms. The PTAX group is comprised of staff from all the offices of each elected official involved with the property tax process. Operationally, the group is focused on returning the property tax first and second installment bills to a predictable and reliable schedule for all taxpayers while also overseeing the implementation of a new technology system to help modernize data transfer and storage. The group has contracted researchers to conduct thorough analysis of the features of the property tax system, their effects, and begin exploring possible long-term system reforms.

The Bureau of Asset Management won for the Build Up Cook initiative, which helps under-resourced communities access infrastructure funds, implement projects and set up new internal systems and processes around capital investment. The Build Up Cook model cultivates partnerships to provide wraparound construction support to address urgent needs while aligning County and partner resources to build local capacity over the long term through fundraising, analysis, training, and ad-hoc project support.

The Bureau of Economic Development was recognized for the Source Grant program, a $50 million investment in small businesses to help stabilize their operations, foster recovery and resiliency, and advance equity in the post-pandemic economy. Through an equitable, complex, and transparent evaluation process, the County reviewed over 16,000 applications and awarded 3,000 small businesses with grants.

The Bureau of Administration won for establishing Illinois' first Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials (CHaRM Center). This comprehensive recycling drop-off facility allows residents to dispose responsibly of various materials including electronics, textiles, furniture items, appliances, personal healthcare equipment among others. Centrally located near municipalities without curbside recycling services or those with low municipal recycling rates designated as environmental justice areas—since its opening—the CHaRM Center has collected over 85,000 pounds from more than 2,500 residents across 70 different municipalities.

Awards are given in 18 categories reflecting comprehensive county services:

Community and Economic Development:

- Interactive Financial Dashboards for ARPA Programs (Bureau of Economic Development)

- Greater Chicagoland Economic Partnership (Bureau of Economic Development)

- Neighborhood Revitalization Brownfield Remediation Program (Bureau of Administration)

- New Affordable Housing Program Provides Property Tax Relief (Cook County Assessor’s Office)

- Starting Block Grants: A Capacity Building Grant Initiative (Justice Advisory Council)

- The Cook County 2023 Source Grant (Bureau of Economic Development)

- The Metals Hub (Bureau of Economic Development)

County Administration and Management:

- Property Taxes in Cook County (Office of the President)

- Record Information Management Improvements (Bureau of Administration)

- Strategic Engagement to Encourage Employee Retention Recruitment (Cook County Assessor’s Office)

County Resiliency: Infrastructure Energy Sustainability:

- Build Up Cook (Bureau Asset Management)

- Businesses Reducing Impact on Environment (Bureau Administration)

- Center Hard Recycle Materials (Bureau Administration)

- Cook County WasteNot Partnership (Bureau Asset Management)

- Hydrologic Reconnection Powderhorn Lake Wolf Lake Restoration Project (Forest Preserve)

- LeadCare +TAP (Bureau Economic Development)

- LED Light Replacement Bureau Asset Management

- Youth Internship Program Bureau Asset Management

Criminal Justice Public Safety:

- Forensic Reliability Racial Impact Project Public Defender

- Public Defender Immigration Division

- Customer Service Call Center Circuit Court

-Domestic Violence Survivor Center Circuit Court

-Transforming Public Conversations about Community Safety Public Defender

Health:

- Addressing Food Insecurity among Medicaid Members: FoodCare by CountyCare Health

-Food Medicine Commissioner Dennis Deer

-Heart Institute Excellence Program Health

-How Analytics Operations Supported CCH’s Mission Care New Arrivals Health

-Medicaid Member Demographics Improvement Strategy Engagement Health

-Medical Debt Relief Initiative Office President

-Medical Examiner Jail Overdose Prevention Program Bureau Administration

-Behavioral Health Care Initiative Housing Authority

Project REACCH OUT Bridge Clinic Health Provident Hospital Growth Program Health Sal Sepsis Sea Otter Great Unwinding Engaging Medicaid Members During Redetermination Vets Pets

Human Services:

-Cook Medical Examiner Family Services Plan Honor Grants Promoting Engagement Enhance Recovery Program

Information Technology:

-Cook Technology Academy Data Center Consolidation Hyper Convergence Enhancing Healthcare Access Express Care Initiative Unified Communications Unincorporated Zoning Requirements Libraries Legal Resources Access Training Public Safety Partnership Personnel Management Employment Training Enhancing Transparency Equity Employer Choice Improving Employee Wellness Precursor Better Patient Outcomes Professional Development Division Provident Scholarship Fund Planning Population Epidemiology Surveillance Risk Emergency EMRS Private Partnership Transportation Bike Plan Volunteers CERT Initiative

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