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Illinois taxpayers face fourth year of borrow and spend
Nearly a month after missing their April 7 adjournment date,
Democratic legislative leaders forced through a state budget that
subjects taxpayers to yet another year of borrow and spend.
The $59 billion budget for fiscal 2007, which Democrats drafted,
ignoring Republican input, was passed by a strictly partisan vote on
May 4.
Citizens will pay a heavy price for a budget funded by pension
raids, record-high state debt and a record-high backlog of unpaid
bills. The Senate Republican Caucus prefers a return to fiscal
discipline and prioritized spending rather than the governor's
financial schemes that delay repayment and saddle future generations
with staggering debt.
Gov. Blagojevich is trying to be all things to all people, and in
the process he is bankrupting the state. He robs the pensions of
teachers, prison guards and road crews to pay for pork projects. He
proposes new and bigger entitlement programs while Medicaid
providers wait months to be paid, and his very own All Kids program,
which was supposed to pay for itself, faces a fiscal shortfall. His
slippery budgeting endangers the stability of longtime programs like
CHIP, which provides coverage for people who might not otherwise be
able to find insurance.
The state's current budget, for fiscal 2006, began by raiding
$1.2 billion from pension funding, and the fiscal 2007 budget will
siphon off an additional $1.1 billion. The Chicago teachers' pension
system will not be shorted, however. It will receive $75.2 million
and be funded at 80 percent, while the suburban and downstate
teachers' system will be funded at 60 percent.
In the last three years, Blagojevich has borrowed more money than
any other governor in the past 20 years. He has increased spending
by $3 billion over the last three years, and this year's budget will
increase by an additional $1.4 billion.
Fiscal 2006 will end with more than $1.8 billion in unpaid bills,
but Medicaid eligibility has been expanded every year of the
Blagojevich administration, so that one of every seven Illinoisans
is now enrolled in Medicaid.
Funding for elementary and secondary education will increase by
just $170 per student, and categorical programs, such as
transportation and special education, will get only an additional
$56.7 million -- hurting schools that typically get more of their
state funding through categorical grants than through the state
school-aid formula.
Many are also concerned that the budget does not provide adequate
funding to address understaffing at Illinois prisons, which poses a
serious safety threat to correctional employees and to the
communities in which the prisons are located.
My biggest disappointment was that the budget does not do more to
promote economic development and jobs. In his first year,
Blagojevich raised 300 taxes and fees, sending jobs across the state
line. Illinois is currently 45th in the nation in job growth, and
median household income has fallen $6,000 in recent years. This
governor does not seem to understand that Illinois' economic future
depends on creation of jobs.
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 The budget also includes about $256 million in spending add-ons
to sweeten the budget deal as a means of ensuring its passage. To
pay for this added spending, the governor and his allies are taking
more than $200 million from dedicated state funds, which will affect
such areas as state income tax refunds, in the amount of $44
million; railroad crossing safety, at $4 million; trauma centers, $5
million; health insurance reserves, $21 million; and tourism, $7
million.
Fiscal 2007 runs from July 1, 2006, through June 30, 2007.
Blagojevich no friend to education
Blagojevich was at the University of Illinois on May 9 to trumpet
MAP Plus, an expanded financial assistance program for college
students. Not surprisingly, he was met with student protests and
some hard questions about his dismal track record of funding higher
education.
In just three years, Blagojevich has cut university funding by
nearly $100 million, which has forced higher tuition and fees. To
pay for MAP Plus, he is selling a portion of the students' loan
portfolio for quick cash from private investors and leaving students
vulnerable to the financial whims of those investors.
MAP Plus provides for higher education grants of $500 per year
for students who are Illinois residents and U.S. citizens or
permanent residents; enrolled at least half-time as sophomores,
juniors or seniors at MAP-eligible institutions; and from families
with incomes of less than $200,000.
Blagojevich has added insult to injury by giving higher education
only a $21 million increase for the next fiscal year.
There is also a stark contrast in the funding increases for
state-supported universities. Chicago State and Governor's State,
both in the Chicago region, get 6.5 percent each, while other
schools get increases of 2.5 percent or less, as follows: Illinois
State, 1.3 percent; Eastern, 1.4 percent; Northeastern, 2.0 percent;
Northern Illinois, 1.2 percent; Southern, 2.5 percent; U of I, 1.8
percent; and Western, 1.5 percent.
Law cracks down on people who falsely claim military medals
Under a new law, individuals who lie about receiving military
medals could face criminal charges.
Signed by the governor on May 11,
House Bill 4121 makes it illegal for a person to falsely
represent himself or herself as the recipient of a Purple Heart,
Congressional Medal of Honor, Bronze Star, Silver Star or any Medal
of Valor. A violation is a petty offense for which the offender can
be fined as much as $200.
Supported by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, House Bill 4121 was approved March 28 by
the Senate and April 3 by the House of Representatives.
State Farm's child passenger safety day is Saturday
Bloomington area citizens who want to learn how to correctly
install a child safety seat can go to State Farm Corporation
headquarters, 1 State Farm Plaza in Bloomington, on Saturday from 10
a.m. to 2 p.m. State Farm is partnering with the McLean County
SafeKids Coalition for the event. For more information, call (309)
766-6151.
[Column from
Sen. Bill Brady] |
