SOUTHERN ILLINOIS – Our local state lawmakers are letting their opinions be known regarding Gov. JB Pritzker’s Budget and State of the State Address held Wednesday in Springfield.
Rep. Jacobs: Illinois on Track to Spend More while Revenues Head South
SPRINGFIELD – 118th District State Representative Paul Jacobs (R-Pomona) says Illinois is on track to spend more money than it takes in if the General Assembly adopts Governor JB Pritzker’s proposed budget. The Governor delivered a combined Budget and State of the State speech to a joint Session of the General Assembly on Wednesday.
“I heard a lot of promises to spend big money on new programs today, but I can’t help but notice that revenues are going down,” Jacobs said. “This is not a sustainable way of budgeting. What small business or family budget can sustain spending more than they’re taking in? There may be some laudable goals and programs that are worth looking at, but the basic financial principle that you can’t spend more than you’re taking in should be the basis for budget making in Illinois.”
Major spending increases by area include:
- $572 million to preK-12 Education
- $219 million to Higher Education
- $224 million to Public Safety
- $912 million to Human Services
- $709 million to Healthcare/Medicaid
“The people I serve are demanding inflation relief, electricity rate relief, and relief at the gas pump. The people I serve are demanding tax relief. We have to ease the financial burden on working families and stop the runaway spending that has caused inflation in the first place,” Jacobs said. “I am strongly in favor of a line-by-line review of the Governor’s proposal. The right place to do this review is in the appropriations committees in the House and Senate. A speech is just a speech. Now it’s time to get to work to ensure we are responsibly spending the peoples’ money, and not obligating our state to programs that we won’t be able to afford in the future.”
Windhorst: Governor’s Spending Plan may Lead to Broken Promises
SPRINGFIELD – Following Governor Pritzker’s combined State of the State and Budget Address on Wednesday, State Representative and House Republican Floor Leader Patrick Windhorst (R-Metropolis) says he is concerned the Governor’s spending plan could lead to broken promises.
“Because federal pandemic relief funds have been reduced significantly, state revenues are expected to decline, but in his speech today, the Governor proposed the creation of new programs and expansion of existing programs,” Windhorst said. “With a recession expected in the coming months, I am concerned that revenues will fall further, and that promises to spend more money on expanded programs could lead to one of two things: empty promises or future tax increases.”
Windhorst notes that state revenues are expected to decline by 2.8% ($1.4 billion), but the Governor proposes to create new programs and expand existing programs to spend 7.9% ($2.75 billion) more money in the FY24 state budget.
“Increasing spending while revenues are dropping makes little financial sense, especially while families are struggling under the weight of record inflation, gas prices, and energy prices that are out of control,” Windhorst said. “The budget process must be conducted in public, with adequate time to review the budget line by line. The people of Illinois deserve transparency and financial discipline.”
Windhorst also released an audio statement in response to the governor’s State of the State/Budget Address delivered to a joint session of the Illinois General Assembly Wednesday. Windhorst said with the governor’s proposals we are either going to have to break our promises to state residents or raise taxes.
Severin: Governor’s Proposed Budget may Lead to Unsustainable Spending
SPRINGFIELD – Reacting to the first in-person State of the State and Budget Address since 2020, delivered by Governor JB Pritzker to a joint Session of the Illinois legislature on Wednesday, 116th District State Representative Dave Severin (R-Benton) issued the following statement.
“The Governor today laid out a spending plan that I am concerned will put taxpayers on the hook for future tax increases. The promises of increased funding for programs sounds good, but we have to investigate each line item through the appropriations process to ensure that we are not setting ourselves up for future financial failure. We have seen record spending budgets clear the General Assembly for several years in a row now. That is not sustainable while revenues are projected to fall.
“The Federal COVID-19 cash that has propped up state government spending for years is now running out. Revenues are expected to trend downward due to the recession that is predicted to happen in the coming months. It’s time to get real about what our state government can and cannot afford. Today’s speech is just the first step in a long budget making process. We are talking about spending the people’s money, and that means the people deserve to know where every nickel is being spent. That means no more late-night budgets dropped on our desks with one hour to review them. I am calling for openness, transparency, and a renewed effort to exercise fiscal discipline to ensure the budget is balanced and our spending is sustainable without asking people and families for more of their hard-earned money.”
Severin also released an audio statement in response to the governor’s State of the State/Budget Address delivered to a joint session of the Illinois General Assembly Wednesday. Severin pointed to two items of concern from the governor’s speech.
Senator Fowler responds to 2023-24 Budget Address
SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Dale Fowler (R-Harrisburg) has released the following statement following the Governor’s State of the State and State Budget Address:
“While there were encouraging parts of the Governor’s budget proposal today pertaining to education, we have to put a hold on spending as our nation heads towards a recession.
“Federal funds that were allocated in previous budgets are drying up and this year’s budget includes $3 billion in new permanent spending.
“If we don’t rein in our spending, taxpayers could be in for a massive tax hike while so many families are already struggling due to rising inflation and utility costs.”
Sen. Bryant reacts to Governor’s Budget/State of State Address
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois State Senator Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) released the following statement in response to the Governor’s Budget/State of the State address:
“The Governor started out with some very positive notes during his budget address. If you only listened to the beginning of his speech, you would think that Illinois is in a great position. However, if you actually take a deep dive into his proposal, you quickly realize that he wants to spend $3 billion in new, permanent spending that the state cannot afford as our nation teeters on the brink of an economic recession.
“The Governor didn’t get the progressive income tax he wanted two years ago, so now it appears that his plan is to spend us into a tax increase with this budget proposal. We need to refrain ourselves from needlessly spending on every wish list item and ensure we prioritize spending on things we can all agree upon while our state’s finances are still in a good position.
“I look forward to a vigorous debate as we move through the budget process over the next few months, and hope that the Legislature will be more fiscally responsible than the Governor was today.”