On November 19, the Forest Preserve District's Fiscal Year 2020 budget passed the County Board.
Introduced to the Board on October 22, the total budget requested $124.6 million. A 3.8 percent increase over last year, the FY20 budget includes $23.3 million worth of funding towards the County's world-class partnerships with Brookfield Zoo and the Chicago Botanic Garden.
The Forest Preserve District's budget also addresses the acquisition and restoration of nearly 70,000 acres in the District's purview. During 2019, volunteers spent more than 71,000 hours of time in stewardship. Invasive brush was removed from more than 850 acres of the total 13,000 acres that are currently under restoration. A partnership between the Housing Authority, Friends of the Forest Preserves and the Forest Preserve Foundation provided 112 youth with a change to learn more about a career in conservation while earning a paycheck.
The Forest Preserve District's FY20 budget maintains the sustainability, resiliency and health of the preserves is paramount to ensuring that is accessible for generations to come.