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 Bill No.: SB 2043
An Act Concerning Appropriations
Action: Vetoed
To the Honorable Members
of
The Illinois Senate,
99th General Assembly:
Today I veto Senate
Bill 2043 from the 99th General Assembly, which would explode the
State’s budget deficit, exacerbate the State’s cash flow crisis, and
place further strain on social service providers and recipients who
are already suffering from the State’s deficit spending.
SB 2043 Would Exacerbate
Our Budget and Cash Flow Deficits
Senate Bill 2043 would appropriate $721 million for the Monetary
Award Program (MAP) and community colleges programs. Senate Bill
2043 proposes the same funding levels for these programs as were
included in the unconstitutional, unbalanced budget passed by the
General Assembly last year, which was opposed by many legislators,
including Democrats, and which I vetoed.
Despite its constitutional obligation to balance the budget, the
General Assembly has not put forward a plan to pay for these
programs, whether through spending reductions, revenue, or
cost-saving reforms. The Governor’s Office of Management and Budget
concluded that Senate Bill 2043 would add $721 million to the
State’s budget deficit.
Today, the Comptroller reports 48,000 vendor vouchers waiting to be
paid, a $7.2 billion backlog of bills, and a grand total balance of
$145 million in the general funds. This bill would spend money the
State does not have.
Moreover, Senate Bill 2043’s unfunded spending would significantly
exacerbate the State’s current cash flow challenges. To protect and
prioritize General State Aid payments, the Comptroller would be
forced to further delay payments for other goods and services across
State government, putting social services further at risk. We have
already seen that the State’s deficit spending is harshest to social
service providers and our State’s most vulnerable residents. Senate
Bill 2043 would further delay those payments at a time when those
recipients are already under fiscal stress.
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A Better, Constitutional Way to Fund
Higher Education
The Constitution and our obligation to taxpayers require a balanced budget.
Recognizing this, legislators in both the House of Representatives and the
Senate put forward a plan to pay for higher education spending – not just those
programs included in Senate Bill 2043, but also funding for our public
universities. I thank them for their leadership.
House Bill 4539 and Senate Bill 2349 would appropriate $1.6 billion for higher
education programs, while Senate Bill 2789 would authorize the Governor,
Comptroller, and Treasurer to identify and implement funding by reallocating
funds and reducing spending in other areas. Together these bills would fund MAP,
community college programs, and our public universities, without exploding the
deficit or exacerbating the State’s cash flow crisis. This is a far more
fiscally responsible – and constitutional – plan for funding higher education.
Therefore, pursuant to Section 9(b) of Article IV of the Illinois Constitution
of 1970, I hereby return Senate Bill 2043, entitled “AN ACT concerning
appropriations”, with the foregoing objections, vetoed in its entirety.
Sincerely,
Bruce Rauner
GOVERNOR
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