In this issue:
- Governor still coming up short on funding budget proposal
- Unemployment holding at 4.8%
- Local students were House pages
- Illinois headlines
Governor still coming up short on funding budget proposal
Next week is the scheduled end of the spring legislative session. There are many issues still unresolved, but the largest of these is the state budget for the fiscal year which begins on July 1. Earlier this year Governor Pritzker offered a $55 billion budget proposal, which would be the most expensive spending bill in the history of the state of Illinois. But with just days to go before a budget must be passed, the state is still short of the revenue needed to fund the Governor’s big spending plans.
During a hearing of the House Revenue and Finance Committee, the Governor’s office admitted the state is now $500 million short of the revenue estimate they previously offered to the General Assembly.
The Governor’s spending proposal is based upon money which is now considered unlikely to flow into Springfield. The responsible thing to do at this point would be to trim the spending proposal to keep it within the amount of money the state actually expects to receive. But there are proposals floating around the Capitol for another big tax increase to make up the difference. Last year Democrats rammed through a large tax hike in the closing hours of session in order to balance the current budget.
Some analysts, including the General Assembly’s in-house budget agency, predicted this shortfall months ago. Fortunately, there is still time to adjust the budget proposal to fit within the expected revenue. That is what should happen, rather than just raising taxes yet again.
Unemployment holding at 4.8%
Illinois’ unemployment rate was unchanged in April, holding at 4.8%, according to data recently released by the Illinois Department of Employment Security.
When compared with one year ago, the state has lost jobs in Manufacturing (down by 5300 jobs) and Professional and Business Services (lost 11,500 jobs). The Government sector of the employment picture went up by 16,800 jobs over the past year. In total, 321,700 Illinois residents were classified as unemployed and looking for work.
Our neighbors in Indiana have an unemployment rate of 4.1%, slightly lower than the national rate of 4.2%.
Local students were House pages
Three students from our area recently visited the Capitol to serve as House Pages for a Day.
Last Friday the Josefik brothers, Luke and Mike, joined me on the House floor for session. Luke is a sophomore at Dwight Township High School and Mike is a recent graduate of St. Paul Catholic School in Odell.
Luke is a board scholar, is active in the Boy Scouts and FFA, where he is the reporter and next year will be the chapter vice president. He also participates in cross country, basketball, scholastic bowl, math team, and the school’s bass fishing team.
Mike is also a board scholar and is active in Boy Scouts, cross country, basketball, scholastic bowl, math team and track, as well as Rubik’s cube competitions. I challenged my colleagues to come and compete with him on the Rubik’s cube, but nobody answered the challenge.
Both brothers are national champion canoe marathon competitors.
On Tuesday of this week, Brianna Hilleary of Odell was my guest on the House floor. She just finished her freshman year at Western Illinois University, where she is studying in law enforcement and justice administration. She is part of Alpha Phi Sigma, Campus Students for Christ and ROTC. Brianna is heavily involved in 4-H and raising and showing livestock.
It was great to have some 106th District students join us in Springfield!
Our current bill backlog
When a vendor provides the state with goods and services, they submit the bill to the Illinois Comptroller for payment. The Comptroller processes the paperwork and pays the bill when funds are available in the state’s checking account. Currently the total amount of unpaid bills is $1,679,929,647. This figure changes daily. Last year at this time the state had $877 million in bills awaiting payment. This only includes bills submitted to the Comptroller for payment, not unfunded debts like the state’s pension liability, which is well over $100 billion.
Illinois headlines
Illinois mulls ending a health program for some immigrants living in the US illegally
Protecting taxpayer dollars, holding the majority accountable: meet our budgeteers
Illinois Gaming Board launches human trafficking protocol
AG: Tollway violated the Open Meetings Act with settlement vote
Illinois Tollway expects 8M travelers during extended Memorial Day weekend