Mayor Brandon Johnson on Thursday will propose a $16.6 billion budget for next year that reinstates Chicago’s corporate head tax while scaling back an extra pension payment, kicking off what could be the freshman executive’s most grueling budget process yet.

The recommendation is a mishmash of fixes that leans on $438 million in new taxes and fees. It avoids unpopular ideas like a property tax hike, a grocery tax or a garbage fee increase but adds a new charge on social media tech giants and a monthly $21-per-employee tax on larger companies, according to a Wednesday briefing with reporters.

Johnson’s proposal — a 3% decrease from this year’s spending plan — slashes 446 city jobs, a cut that includes layoffs of some whose pay is funded by federal grants or pandemic relief money that

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