Progra ms that would move more than 1,000 people with disabilities
and mental illness into community care were also considered for
cuts, said Kelly Kraft, assistant director of Quinn's budget office.
She said the Democratic governor is not proposing the reductions but
that they were merely raised as possibilities when aides were
brainstorming. She acknowledged the ideas were shared with the
General Assembly as recently as Tuesday.
The fact that such painful and probably unpopular cuts were
considered suggests the scope of the problem facing Quinn.
Legislators sent him a budget about $1.5 billion less than he
proposed. Quinn insists it's simply not enough money to keep all of
state government running for a full year. Either legislators approve
more money, he says, or harsh service cuts are on the way.
Quinn is expected to spell out at noon Thursday what services and
jobs he plans to cut if more money isn't approved.
Legislators and their aides say they have gotten little
information from Quinn so far and don't know which ideas are being
actively considered.
Kraft said the process of deciding the cuts included "budget
exercises" meant to generate ideas. "They're not even possibilities
as much as 'here's something, here's something,'" she said.
One such exercise raised the possibility of cutting 85 percent of
the state's parole officers, or 391 people, who monitor inmates
released from prison. Lawmakers could avert those cuts and the
closure of a state prison by coming up with an additional $60
million.
Another possibility was to lay off personnel at the Illinois
Department of Revenue. The trade-off would have been giving up $800
million in tax collections over three years. Under the scenarios
discussed by the governor's staff, lawmakers could prevent those
cuts by approving an additional $18 million.
Kraft said those ideas were never even presented to Quinn as
options and are not going to be proposed.
"Those are not on the table. That is not something the governor
is doing," she said.
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Another scenario involved 300 people with developmental
disabilities and 750 with mental illness. With $45 million in
additional spending, their switch from state institutions to
community care could be halted.
Kraft said that particular idea is off the table, but other cuts
affecting services to the disabled and mentally ill could be part of
Quinn's budget proposal.
The spokesman for a key union said the fact that Quinn aides
dropped the idea of cutting parole officers shows how little fat is
left in the state budget.
"There is simply no way to sustain any amount of cuts to the
ranks of parole officers and maintain responsible, safe oversight of
paroled inmates," said Anders Lindall of American Federation of
State, County and Municipal Employees, Council 31.
[Associated Press;
By CHRISTOPHER WILLS]
Associated Press writer Deanna Bellandi contributed
to this report from Chicago.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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