* You know that feeling when you can’t ever seem to get ahead? That, only it’s a state government…
Chart shows that the State of Illinois ran budgetary deficits in its general operating funds in seven of the last eleven years and is expected to end FY2019 with another budget gap: https://t.co/Yo2KCRbfbBpic.twitter.com/lcEcA9LNPA
— The Civic Federation (@CivicFederation) April 3, 2019
Nope, CAFR still isn’t posted on the Comptroller’s website 9 months after the end of the fiscal year. And as you see in the chart, FY 2018 is marked as preliminary.
Smalls -
The CAFRs were always done by December 31st … until Filan, enabled by Blago, and Quinn / Vaught, refused to replace the 2002 ERIs. Hence Rauner’s ERP.
As of the 6/30/17 CAFR, the General Fund had an unassigned fund balance of $-16.637 BILLION. As Rich pointed out to me a few weeks ago, that was made worse after the income tax had dropped back down to 3.75%. Now, even with the income tax back to 4.95%, it still looks like there will be a growing negative fund balance.
Yet more evidence of Raunerian governing malpractice; this graphic should be whipped out whenever revisionist historians start waxing nostalgic for “businessmen” in office. Just heartbreaking.
Looking good Illinois. Wait until an economic slowdown hits. Given the budget deficit that will occur until JB’s progressive tax is implemented, this won’t look better anytime soon. Could even look worse given that expenditures can’t be reduced and other promised revenue looks like it will slower than expected. At least we’ll have a budget, unbalanced as it may be.
If the budget was balanced during the Quinn years, then how come the pension debt grew so much during that time? Quinn looks like a genius if you ignore the total debt load, but is that fair?
@SBB- Quinn was the first to start paying the full pension payment in many years. That is when the budget issues began, so to speak, due to the large pension debt payment. Quinn wasn’t very good, but he did that correctly. The financial crisis and the poor returns/losses for pension investments was the primary reason for the increased liability.
- Anyone Remember - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 3:46 pm:
Has the CAFR been released?
- Smalls - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:05 pm:
Nope, CAFR still isn’t posted on the Comptroller’s website 9 months after the end of the fiscal year. And as you see in the chart, FY 2018 is marked as preliminary.
- Union thug - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:07 pm:
So Quinn ran a surplus and the business man Republican turned it to a deficit.
- City Zen - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:09 pm:
All we need is that last 0.05%.
- Flat Bed Ford - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:16 pm:
Hey, but yea. Lets bash Republicans for not showing their cuts. We clearly have a spending problem. The 101st GA is only making it worse.
- Anyone Remember - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:20 pm:
Smalls -
The CAFRs were always done by December 31st … until Filan, enabled by Blago, and Quinn / Vaught, refused to replace the 2002 ERIs. Hence Rauner’s ERP.
- Smalls - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:20 pm:
As of the 6/30/17 CAFR, the General Fund had an unassigned fund balance of $-16.637 BILLION. As Rich pointed out to me a few weeks ago, that was made worse after the income tax had dropped back down to 3.75%. Now, even with the income tax back to 4.95%, it still looks like there will be a growing negative fund balance.
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:29 pm:
===We clearly have a spending problem===
We have a problem balancing inputs with outputs.
- Jibba - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 4:51 pm:
Quinn gets too little credit, especially from Republicans who thought they could do better, but they were wrong.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 5:11 pm:
–Quinn gets too little credit,–
A lot of good balancing budgets did him.
But that “Illinois hasn’t had a balanced budget in decades” can be retired.
- State gate - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 5:12 pm:
It’s never too late. Thank you Governor Quinn for a fiscally careful administration that turned things around for our state.
- Crispy - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 6:58 pm:
Yet more evidence of Raunerian governing malpractice; this graphic should be whipped out whenever revisionist historians start waxing nostalgic for “businessmen” in office. Just heartbreaking.
- SSL - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 7:01 pm:
Looking good Illinois. Wait until an economic slowdown hits. Given the budget deficit that will occur until JB’s progressive tax is implemented, this won’t look better anytime soon. Could even look worse given that expenditures can’t be reduced and other promised revenue looks like it will slower than expected. At least we’ll have a budget, unbalanced as it may be.
- Stuntman Bob's Brother - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 8:07 pm:
If the budget was balanced during the Quinn years, then how come the pension debt grew so much during that time? Quinn looks like a genius if you ignore the total debt load, but is that fair?
- JS Mill - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 9:24 pm:
@SBB- Quinn was the first to start paying the full pension payment in many years. That is when the budget issues began, so to speak, due to the large pension debt payment. Quinn wasn’t very good, but he did that correctly. The financial crisis and the poor returns/losses for pension investments was the primary reason for the increased liability.
- Anyone Remember - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 9:40 pm:
Stuntman Bob’s Brother -
The pension debt grew in accordance with Jim Edgar’s 1995 Pension Ramp law …
- Blue Dog Dem - Wednesday, Apr 3, 19 @ 11:08 pm:
To kinda quote a new state senator, we don’t have a spending problem, we have a pension problem.
- Anonymous - Thursday, Apr 4, 19 @ 8:55 am:
Quinn did not balance the budget. Pensions were being underfunded as always.
- Anon - Thursday, Apr 4, 19 @ 9:21 am:
The left half of that graph shows the state during a recession. The right half of the graph shows the state being run by a failure.