[Comments are now opened.]
* Press release…
SPRINGFIELD – House Speaker Mike Madigan, Senate President John Cullerton and their caucuses passed a budget for the 2016 fiscal year beginning July 1 that is nearly $4 billion in the hole.
This latest broken Madigan-Cullerton budget comes on the heels of a Fiscal Year 2015 Madigan-Cullerton budget that was more than $1.5 billion out-of-balance when it was passed.
Since taking office, Governor Rauner has worked diligently to eliminate the inherited $1.5 billion budget deficit without raising taxes, and the state is now projected to end the year with a balanced budget.
With the upcoming Madigan-Cullerton budget deficit more than double that of last year, a mid-year solution is not a possibility this time. The Administration must immediately begin taking steps to manage state spending.
While the Administration is committed to managing the Madigan-Cullerton budget responsibly, because their budget includes no reforms, the options available to the Administration are limited.
“Speaker Madigan, President Cullerton and the politicians they control refuse to act responsibly and reform state government,” Rauner Spokesman Lance Trover said. “It is time they come to the table with Governor Rauner to turnaround Illinois.”
Outlined below are steps the Administration is initiating today in order to begin balancing the phony Madigan-Cullerton budget. Many additional steps will be announced as they are finalized.
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
Effective Immediately
Action Initiated
- Prepare and provide notice for the July 1 suspension of the State Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (SLIHEAP).
- The federal portion of the program, funded at about $170 million, will continue.
Department of Transportation
Effective Immediately
- In light of the state’s current fiscal crisis and a lack of sufficient capital resources, the Illiana Expressway will not move forward at this time. As a result, the Illinois Department of Transportation will remove the project from its current multi-year plan. It is the determination of IDOT that the project costs exceed currently available resources. The Department will begin the process of suspending all existing project contracts and procurements.
Action Initiated
- Beginning July 1, the Department will “ground” all state plane passenger service. Planes will be maintained and available for emergency services.
Department of Juvenile Justice
Action Initiated
Department of Corrections
Action Initiated
Department of Healthcare and Family Services
Action Initiated
- Implement an audit review of nursing home reimbursements to ensure payments comply with recently implemented new rate structure.
- Recover overpayments to nursing homes and implement financial penalties for improper billings.
Illinois State Police
Action Initiated
- Immediately freeze all vehicle purchases.
Department on Aging
Action Initiated
- File emergency rules to enact means testing to Aging’s Community Care Program. No income limit currently exists.
- Increase the Determination of Need (DON) Score required to obtain services through Aging’s Community Care Program
Department of Human Services
Action Initiated
Department of Natural Resources
Action Initiated
- The Department will not award Open Space Land Acquisition Development Grants in FY16.
- The Department will begin the process to suspend operations and close the five state museums to visitors. The state will continue to maintain and secure the museums to protect the artifacts and exhibits.
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*** UPDATE *** Daily Herald…
Gov. Bruce Rauner says he’s preparing to close up to two youth prisons in Illinois, and the centers at Warrenville and St. Charles are among those “under review.”
Rauner says he’s preparing contingency plans in case his budget fight with lawmakers extends deep into the summer. The state loses a lot of its authority to spend money on July 1 if Rauner hasn’t signed a budget into law. That means much of the state payroll would be in question. […]
The Illinois Youth Center in St. Charles houses juvenile offenders and the similar facility in Warrenville is the state’s sole female-only youth prison.
“All facilities are under review,” spokesman Lance Trover said.
* Tribune…
Many of the moves by Rauner appeared aimed at trying to sow discontent among various segments within the Democratic majorities in the Illinois House and Senate. Democrats have remained largely unified in their opposition to what Rauner has called his “turnaround agenda.”
Rauner’s actions are aimed at showing how he would implement a spending plan approved by Democrats for the budget year that begins July 1 which is at least $3 billion short of anticipated revenues. Despite its passage, Democrats have not sent the proposal to Rauner given his vows to reject it outright.
*** UPDATE 2*** State museum closures do not include the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, the governor’s office says.
