In this issue:
- Partisanship reigns as fall session gets underway
- Budget shortfall already stands at $267 million
- Former Speaker Madigan begins his prison sentence
- Talking civics in Watseka
Partisanship reigns as fall session gets underway
The House returned to Springfield this week for the fall legislative session.
There are a lot of important issues we need to address, everything from estate tax and property tax reform, to strengthening ethics laws and cleaning up corruption in state government, to lowering costs for everyday Illinoisans.
But the Democrat majority couldn’t find time for those important issues this week. Instead, we spent Wednesday afternoon debating partisan resolutions about federal issues. We heard five resolutions, which mentioned President Trump 36 times.
There are things we all agree on, like freedom of speech and condemning political violence. But even these unifying issues were used for partisan finger-pointing on the House floor.
We have real and serious challenges facing state government. The most powerful politician in recent Illinois history reported to federal prison this week to start serving his sentence for corruption. Families are losing their farms and businesses because of our estate tax system.
Add in high energy costs and the rising cost of living, and it’s clear: we need real reform to make life affordable for working families in the 106th District.
These are the issues we should be spending our time on as state legislators.
Not grandstanding on federal issues.
We will be back in Springfield for the final week of the fall session on October 28.
Budget shortfall already stands at $267 million
Earlier this month Governor Pritzker issued an executive order to state agencies directing them to find 4% spending cuts which they could make during this fiscal year. The order was an admission that the state budget for this year was based on unrealistic predictions of how much money the state would have available to work with. House Republicans warned last spring that the budget spent too much money, but the Democrats plunged ahead anyway, raising taxes to try to fill the holes in their budget.
Now the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget is now forecasting the state to have a $267 million budget shortfall for the current fiscal year. This means that the state can expect to take in $267 million less in revenue than it is obligated to spend by the budget which Governor Pritzker signed in June. In total, the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget expects state revenue to be short by $827 million, with a portion of that shortfall offset by other revenue, producing a total deficit of $267 million.
Budgets are crafted behind closed doors, based on questionable assumptions about revenue, and then quickly rammed through the House and Senate without enough time for anyone to read them. We have to use realistic figures when we put together a budget, and we cannot keep falling back on more and more tax increases to close the gaps.
This is yet more evidence of the need to reform our budget process.
Former Speaker Madigan begins his prison sentence
Another area of state government which is in need for reform is our ethics laws.
In February, former House Speaker Mike Madigan, who was once the most powerful politician in Illinois, was found guilty on a series of corruption counts. In June he was sentenced to 7.5 years in federal prison. He tried to appeal for a delay, but the court rejected that appeal. And so, earlier this week, he reported to federal prison to begin his sentence.
Madigan’s conviction was just the highest profile in a long (too long!) series of political corruption cases. Madigan was one of several people convicted as part of a scheme to pass legislation favorable to a utility company in exchange for jobs and contracts for his cronies. We have all seen the headlines over the years: governors, legislators, local officials, lobbyists and others convicted in one corruption scandal after another. It has to stop!
When Madigan was speaker, he put in place a system in the House in which he could ensure that bills he did not like would never even come up for a vote. Even though he is gone, that system remains in place, and it has been used to block ethics reform legislation which I and other House members have supported. This blockade needs to end, and these reforms need to be enacted.
Talking civics in Watseka
Mrs. Bandur’s class at Watseka High School is one of my favorite visits each year!
I had a great time talking with her civics students about government and the importance of being active, informed citizens. Always a pleasure to see their enthusiasm and thoughtful questions!
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 $2,336,093,522. This figure changes daily. Last year at this time the state had $2.3 billion 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
Will fall utility rates be lower in Illinois than summer rates
Illinois delays trout stocking due to warm water temperatures
Central Illinois BBB warns of holiday employment scams
ECIAAA announces the continuation of the Energy Assistance Program