Democrats see progress, Republicans see tax hikes in Pritzker's budget plan

[February 16, 2023]  By Andrew Hensel | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Illinois lawmakers are giving mixed reviews of Gov. J.B. Pritzker's budget proposal for the coming fiscal year.

Pritzker's proposal includes $1 billion of new spending for preschool, K-12 and higher education programs as part of nearly $50 billion in overall state spending. Higher education would receive an additional $219 million, K-12 would receive an additional $572 million and a new early childhood education program called Smart Start would be allocated $250 million.

Pritzker spoke about the Smart Start Program and said it has the ability to help many Illinoisans.

"Smart Start is comprised of four elements, pre-K, early intervention and home visiting," Pritzker said before a joint session of the General Assembly Wednesday. "It also makes our existing programs more equitable, giving moderate income families greater access to quality programs and investing in an early childhood workforce made up largely of women and people of color."

Pritzker said Smart Start will put an emphasis on child care improvements.

"I propose Smart Start Workforce Compensation Contracts to move us towards more stable funding to support high quality programming and competitive wages for caregivers," Pritzker said. "The contracts will create a more equitable system for child care providers and families alike, and will require an improved standard of care across the field."

House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, said the investments would be great if the state had the money.

"We want programs that are going to help our most vulnerable as well, our kids, our families, our disabled, our mental health issues that we see here in Illinois," McCombie said. "However, there is no sustainable funding source for this."

State Sen. Terri Bryant, R-Murphysboro, reacts to Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker's budget proposal
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State Sen. Terri Bryant, R-Murphysboro, said the state would have to turn to tax increases to pay for these programs.

"We can not spend all the money that he is proposing because, in essence, what it's going to do is force another tax increase," Bryant said. "I would say the governor did not get the progressive income tax increase that he wanted, and now his plan is to spend us into a tax increase."

Illinois Democrats applauded Pritzker's proposal and said he has made all the right investments.

"The governor's budget was phenomenal overall," said Senate Majority Leader Kimberly Lightford, D-Maywood. "The areas he focused on in early childhood education and K-12 is exactly what our state needs."

State Sen. Elgie Sims, D-Chicago, said Pritzker's plan could help reduce crime by investing in these youth programs.

"I am so proud of the proposal that the governor laid out," Sims said. "We can't just only address ... the crime itself. We've got to address the root causes. That's why we see investments in early childhood and investments in education."

The budget set to begin July 1 will need approval from the 103rd General Assembly.

Andrew Hensel reports on issues in Chicago and Statewide. He has been with The Center Square News since April of 2021 and was previously with The Joliet Slammers.