11 New Positions, $919,667 In New Salaries Proposed In Mayor D'Arcy's 2026 Joliet City Budget

JOLIET, IL — Joliet Mayor Terry D'Arcy's proposed city budget for 2026 includes the addition of 11 more jobs in city government, including several new positions inside City Hall that will pay at least $100,000, Joliet Patch found.

A tabulation of the 11 new jobs shows the proposed starting salaries add up to $919,667 in new salaries.

Although the 2026 city of Joliet budget does not call for raising property taxes and fuel taxes, as D'Arcy voted in favor of last year, the 183-page document calls for 11 new full-time jobs in various city departments.

The 183-page document was shared Friday on the city's website in preparation for Tuesday night's Joliet City Council vote on the city's budget.

Under the section called "Additions to Personnel," there are eight new positions funded by the general government fund and three new positions funded by sewer and fund.

The new positions are deputy director of human resources; recruitment and retention coordinator for human resources, financial accountant for the police department, four additional firefighter/paramedics, cultural affairs special events coordinator, three positions in the finance department including a clerk typist in customer service, account clerk for customer service and service worker in customer service/field operations.

According to page 24, the following new positions, their proposed salaries and total costs after health insurance and fringe benefits are as follows:

• New human resources deputy director: $140,000 salary and a grand total of costs at $210,000.
• New human resources recruitment and retention coordinator at $105,000 salary and $158,733 in grand total costs.
• Service worker handling utility payments in finance department, $99,106 in salary, $151,562 grand total.
• Special events coordinator, city manager's office, $90,000 salary and $140,485 grand total.
• Financial accountant, police department, $90,000 salary and $140,485 grand total.
• Four more firefighter/paramedics positions, each has a budgeted salary of $72,249 with a grand total of $140,421 apiece.
• Customer service account clerk in finance department would make $64,563 in salary and $109,541 as grand total in costs.
• Customer service clerk-typist in finance department would make $42,002 and $82,095 as the position's grand total in costs.

The revelation that D'Arcy wants to add two new $100,000 jobs to the human resources department comes one month after Joliet City Manager Beth Beatty announced that Elizabeth Coronado Abrego, a human resources executive and military veteran, has been selected as the new human resources director for City Hall. Her starting salary was $165,000.

With more than 20 years of experience in human resources management — including 11 years of service with the City of Aurora — Abrego brings expertise and a proven record of leadership to the city’s executive team, the city's press release highlighted.