Chicago's Bold Move: Selling Unpaid Debt to Investors

Chicago is taking a big step. It wants to sell about $1 billion in debt. This debt comes from things like unpaid parking tickets. The city is hoping investors will buy this debt. But there's a catch. A top finance official says this is risky. The official warns it might be costly. Investors might not be interested. This is a first for Chicago. It's the third largest city in the US. But it has never done this before. Not at this scale. The city's comptroller, Michael Belsky, told council members. He did this in a letter last week. Despite the risks, Chicago is moving forward.Why is Chicago doing this? The city has a lot of unpaid debt. It needs money. Selling this debt could help. But it's not a sure thing. Investors might not want to buy. Or they might want a high price. This could make the deal expensive for Chicago. There's more to think about. Selling debt like this is unusual. It's a big experiment. Will it work? No one knows for sure. But Chicago is willing to try. The city hopes to turn a problem into an opportunity.