* If you’ve been wondering what’s really going on with this potential special session, read my latest syndicated newspaper column…
Illinois Senate President John Cullerton says he had a simple message for House Republican Leader Tom Cross in the waning hours of the spring legislative session: “See you in July.”
As you probably know by now, Cullerton’s Senate voted to add $430 million to the House’s austere state spending plan. The Senate initially wanted to spend a billion dollars more than the House, but many of Cullerton’s Democratic members demanded that they at least get something, so they came up with a list totaling $430 million.
House Speaker Michael Madigan couldn’t agree to the additional spending unless Leader Cross also signed off because the two had decided months earlier to stand together on the budget. Cross said he wouldn’t agree to the additional Senate spending, even though Cullerton said he’d found a way to pay for it.
So, Cullerton tacked his member requests onto the capital plan bill, which also contains road construction money. The House refused to agree to the amendment and Speaker Madigan announced that he wanted to appoint a conference committee to work out a deal over the summer.
No dice, said Cullerton. The Senate has no intention of acting on Madigan’s request and wants a new bill, he said. Cullerton could be voted down by the other three caucuses in a conference committee, so that idea is out, he said.
And despite claims by House leaders in both parties that the administration can spend money approved this fiscal year on projects next fiscal year because the state’s “lapse period” was extended out to six months, Cullerton believes that lots of road construction will stop very soon.
“They have the money,” Cullerton explained, “but they have no authority to spend it.”
Gov. Pat Quinn agrees with Cullerton, saying all construction work will have to start shutting down after June 17.
Quinn has said that a special session may have to be held sometime soon to work out this problem, or, as Cullerton put it, “The second largest road construction season in the history of Illinois will come to a halt.”
“I won’t be forcing a special session,” Cullerton said. “The road builders will.”
Cullerton promised to reduce his caucus’ budgetary add-on demand from $430 million down to $280 million. He said he’s backing away from $150 million for the General State Aid program for schools. The House’s budget keeps the official school spending level the same, Cullerton explained, but it deliberately under-funded the program by $150 million. The Legislature can come back in January and add back that cash, he said.
But how will he pay for these budget requests? Well, the Senate President said he purposely left out at least $280 million in what are known as “trouts” from the budget implementation bill to fund the increased spending he wants.
This may seem complicated, but it’s not, so stay with me.
Transfers out, or “trouts” as they’re more commonly called, are inserted into the budget implementation bill every year to transfer cash from the state’s bank account into special funds. They’re done almost as a matter of course, but Cullerton decided to short some of the trouts this year to pay for his members’ requests. But the House Republicans wouldn’t go along with the plan and that’s when Cullerton made his comment about seeing Leader Cross in July.
Cullerton also more than hinted that he plans to reintroduce his dollar a pack tax hike on cigarettes to help pay for the capital plan when the General Assembly returns — a proposal that has so far been rejected by the other three leaders.
As I write this, he’s also preparing to demand that both chambers come back to Springfield to pass a new legislative furlough plan. The Senate introduced a 12-day furlough plan, but never passed it. The House passed an identical proposal, but it’s still sitting in the Senate awaiting action.
The House, for its part, wants the Senate to come back to town on its own, back off its demand for that extra program spending and then pass the furlough bill that the House already approved. But several members of the Senate President’s Democratic caucus are itching for a fight over that extra spending, as is the governor.
For right now anyway, nobody is backing down and I’m not making any vacation plans.
- just sayin' - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:19 am:
Oh come on, Tom Cross and the rest will fold like cheap suits just like they always do.
- wordslinger - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:25 am:
I think this is a really bad play by Cullerton, threatening the construction season for extra spending now.
We just had a huge tax increase. The budget following it should be bare bones, spreading the pain.
Months from now, you could always go for supplemental appropriations, if the need is so dire. But playing chicken with capital plan jobs is just plain wrong.
- Robert - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:26 am:
==This may seem complicated, but it’s not, so stay with me.==
thanks, that actually did help me to stay with you!
one question, and maybe I’m misunderstanding: if Cullerton shorted at least $280 million of trouts, what special funds were shorted?
- MOON - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:29 am:
Cullerton is in a real “catch 22″. Its his caucus that is demanding the extra money for the budget, thus, he has no choice but to push for it. It will be interesting to see how the House reacts to this.
- Cincinnatus - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:31 am:
Goose/Gander: I wonder if the GOP caucus plans a WI vacation during the Special Session…
- Anonymous - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:33 am:
This is monumentally stupid politics. Playing chicken with active construction projects is incredibly dangerous. If the Republicans are smart here, they will let it all blow up. Then Cullerton will wear the jacket for the stopped construction since he tied it to his money grab. (Of course, the Republicans are not smart, and give up every golden opportunity handed to them, so…)
- Old Milwaukee - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:46 am:
Springfield does not work because nobody can keep a deal. Nobody. Roadbuilders and citizens are relying on these construction projects and Cullerton is flushing it down the toilet. For what?
- Wumpus - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 10:51 am:
Any failures will be blamed on the republicans…all 8 of them.
- Palatine - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 11:23 am:
I hope that Madigan and Cross stick to thier guns. If we loose the construction season so be it. I know we need the jobs, but we don’t have the cash. It’s time to say NO. This failure to reach a deal will be on Cullerton
- in Paris - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 11:31 am:
It is interesting how everyone is just talking about how completion dates on suspended projects will be extended. The problem is that losing 1 week in July often takes 3 weeks in the fall to make up. The summer construction activity cannot just be pushed into the fall and winter with no consequence to the traveling public- weather limits what can be done after September.
- Todd - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 12:04 pm:
Cullerton seems to have been playing games with the capital program since it passed.
he has been trying to lure labors types in witht he promise of $3 Billion in new capital spending with his cig tax.
But the real question is has Cullerton violated the leaders agreement on the capital bill that it would be held outside the budget talks when passed?
Cullerton now faces the problem that his southern dems need this program and he is the lone holdout on the capital program.
Any new bill like he has talked about no longer involves just cross, but since he lost two seats it now invloves Radogno. so if he wants to reopen negotiations, on the budget and all, I suggest he clear his calendar for a lot fo talks with Matt Murphy and Kyle McCarter.
either way he wears the jacket, as 3 of 4 leaders are on board, and the Gov needs the capital plan as much as he wants the extra spending. So who was it Cullerton called irrelevant to the process?
quinn cn call just the senate back and make the motion to recede the point of the special session, it is then up to Cullerton as to what he does, nothing, put it up, lock in his caucus?
We have aready seen cracks in his cuacus so he is between the rock and the hard place.
- 42nd Ward - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 12:27 pm:
John Cullerton is no dummy, so it will be interesting to see what is really going on here.
- Nagidam - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 12:41 pm:
Republicans will hold to the original budget and so will Madigan. If the construction season goes down the toilet then there is only one person to blame, President Cullerton. And talk about a catch 22, if he folds he might have a revolt in his caucus. Someone might want to go to his caucus and teach them old math or new math just so they learn how to count. (Unless they really like summer in Springfield).
- orlkon - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 3:54 pm:
Combine work on a spending bill and demanding an additional 12 furlough days from non union employees? Priceless!
- Bill - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 5:09 pm:
Your whole life is a vacation.
- Rich Miller - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 5:19 pm:
Bill, I’m not the guy with the sweet Florida abode.
- Bill - Monday, Jun 13, 11 @ 8:36 pm:
You must have checked my ip or something. The beer is cold and the fish are bitin. Lotsa fires though.