 "We're going to pass a budget, and it will be a balanced budget,"
said state Sen. William Haine, D-Alton, who added that he is
confident the Senate would be done by the end of next week.Exactly how to divide the state's dollars, however, is in dispute.
State Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, wants to see an agreement
between the House and Senate that sets a price tag before lawmakers
start spending.
"It is unfair to human service providers, state employees,
universities to have both chambers pass a budget that is totally
different and have each of them thinking that one or the other is
going to be the realistic number," Syverson said.
The House is working with a $33.2 billion budget, while the Senate
is working with a $34.3 billion plan. Both estimates are less than
the $35.4 billion figure that Gov. Pat Quinn said he wants to spend
next year.
"The minute we suggest making cuts to one of those programs, if
we're specific in that, what you'll find is that the opposition will
quickly run to the press and talk about how we're trying to take
food away from babies, or we're trying to take health care away from
seniors," Syverson said.
Before leaving for break, Senate President John Cullerton,
D-Chicago, called on Republicans to officially file their own
measures on the budget. In March, Republicans released an overall
plan to cut between $4 billion and $6 billion, but no firm budget
measures have yet to be filed.
Haine echoed Cullerton's request.
"It's somewhat unfair to say we're going to put the shoe on their
foot, when they have intimated that they could make greater cuts, in
a press conference, but have yet to come up with the mechanism to do
it," Haine said.
Republicans say they will have a plan ready next week, said state
Sen. Kyle McCarter, R-Highland.
"The majority party -- the ones in complete charge -- are telling us
that they want us to take the lead, and if that's what it takes, we
might just have to take the lead," McCarter said.
Democrats control both the governor's office and the Legislature
and can pass a budget with only Democratic votes before midnight on
May 31.
After that, a three-fifths majority vote in each chamber is
needed, requiring Republican votes.
Republican state Sen. Pamela Althoff of Crystal Lake, who is the
minority spokeswoman for one of the two Senate appropriations
committees, said she has been working with both Democrats and
Republicans during the break.
"My understanding is that (the Democrats) will take that
information back to their caucus, meet and (try) to determine where
we can make significant reductions, (and) give that proposal,"
Althoff said.
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Although Althoff said she has seen bipartisan efforts in crafting
next year's budget, she is unsure how much Republican input will
come through in the final product.
"If we follow President Cullerton's proposal and have individual
agency bills -- which is something the House is also talking about
doing -- I think that'll be a problem for many members within my
caucus, as I believe most of those agency budget proposals will
increase spending overall," Althoff said. "(It) obviously will be
very difficult for Senate Republicans to vote for."
State Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, wants to see less talk and
more action.
"We've been very engaged with the (state) agencies -- identifying
those cuts, trying to identify where those cuts are going to come
from, which line items -- and next week we're going to have the bills
to put forward that the votes can be taken on," Sullivan said. "The
Senate Republicans have not done that."
The political posturing from both sides has a lot to do with how
parties want to be seen in the next election, said Michael G.
Miller, a political science professor at the University of
Illinois-Springfield.
Miller said most politicians don't want to have something they've
said during budget debates haunt them on the campaign trail.
"The closer the partisan division in an assembly, the longer the
budgeting process takes. Because first, there's the compromises that
one has to make, and crafting these funding bills take time," Miller
said. "At the same time, when you're in an economic environment or
budgeting situation like this assembly finds itself in ..., it
seems like it's human nature to want to put those off for as long as
possible."
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By MELISSA LEU and MARY J. CRISTOBAL]]
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