[Updated and bumped up so that I can use this to give you any further session news.]

*** 9:25 am *** The governor’s press office says there will be no leaders meeting today.

*** 10:17 am *** The guv’s press office says they’ve requested a 2:30 pm leaders meeting for tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the House has canceled tomorrow’s session and the Senate has not yet posted any committee hearings this week.

*** 12:16 pm *** Comptroller Dan Hynes’ memo on crucial dates in a budget meltdown, mentioned below, can be downloaded here.

*** 4:16 pm *** Cheap Trick coming to the Senate tomorrow? That’s the word.

* My weekly syndicated newspaper column examines the rampant finger-pointing at the Statehouse. Here’s one example, but please go read the whole thing…

Senate Republican Leader Frank Watson has said since he first joined the budget negotiations this month that he believes Gov. Rod Blagojevich is not serious about doing a deal anytime soon. Last week, Watson reiterated his complaint and shared a brief anecdote about the negotiations.

According to Watson, after the leaders had finished discussing the Chicago Transit Authority’s problems during a closed-door meeting, the governor opened the door for discussion on other subjects. Watson said he then asked about the budget. “What’s the rush?” Blagojevich asked, according to Watson.

A spokesperson for the governor claimed that Watson took the governor’s comment out of context. The behind-the-scenes pushback against Watson was intensely fierce and, as a result, was not mentioned in any news stories the next day.

But numerous people who were in the meeting backed up Watson’s claim, insisting Watson did not take the quote out of context.

Does it matter? Some. If there is to be any sort of government shutdown or serious budgetary crisis, it could have serious political consequences.

* Bernie Schoenberg takes a look at the governor’s work ethic, in light of the guv’s demand that legislators be in town five days a week…

In the more than three months listed [March 1 through June 8], the records show the governor spent five nights in Springfield, and was physically in the city for just under 200 hours including those nights. I am assuming his only visits to Springfield were on state planes, and I have no evidence otherwise.

He was physically in the city on parts of 25 days, but on 15 of those days, his airport-to-airport time was less than seven hours. And on one of those days, the Springfield presence was just a 15-minute stopover between Harrisburg and Moline.

* And the cost of his commutes…

Not including a handful of helicopter trips on the March 1-June 8 logs, the governor took 21 one-way trips between Springfield and O’Hare, which would amount to $31,101 in real costs. The 13 one-way trips listed between Springfield and Midway would come to $18,616.

That’s more than $49,700 in just more than three months - and it doesn’t count the miles those planes are flying without the governor on board as they go to pick him up or return to their hangar space. Adding those miles would double the amount to nearly $100,000 for those King Air flights alone.

* And Gatehouse has a helpful article that examines the timeline for a state budget shutdown…

About 4,900 employees of statewide elected officials could miss a payday if a budget isn’t in place by July 9, the report says. If a budget still isn’t approved by July 19, more than 8,100 employees of the Illinois State Police, Department of Transportation, Department of Central Management Services, Environmental Protection Agency and State Board of Education will miss a payday.

The deadlines continue throughout the month, culminating July 25, when 28,000 workers with the departments of Corrections and Human Services will go unpaid unless a budget has been approved by that date. […]

More than $2 billion was paid out by the comptroller’s office last July for nonpayroll expenses. For example, $270 million was paid in Department of Human Services grants to social service providers, $25 million for foster-care grants and $750 million in Medicaid payments. All of those would be affected by an ongoing impasse this July. Unlike state payrolls, there isn’t a specific schedule for making these payments, the report says, making it “impossible to assign a specific date at which services are disrupted.”

Court orders require the state to continue issuing checks for programs such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and Assistance to Aged, Blind and Disabled. A court ruling also requires that state judges be paid. Although not covered by a court ruling, pension payments to retirees, tax refunds and payments on College Savings bonds will be made even without a budget.

* More budget stuff, compiled by Paul…

* Rep. Fritchey: Collateral Damage

* Althoff, Franks, Tryon: Gridlock in Springfield