* Greg Hinz…

The new report fits nicely with a paper from the Illinois Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, the General Assembly’s fiscal research unit.

What caught my eye is a nice summary—see Page 150—of what’s happened to the state’s credit rating through the years.

The study shows that Gov. J.B. Pritzker is right that, during his tenure, the ratings from the three major bond-review agencies have gone up. But they’re still a tad below what they were when former Gov. Bruce Rauner took office in 2014, and several rungs below the AA and equivalent rating the state had enjoyed for decades.

Chart…

       

27 Comments - Norseman - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 10:38 am: So, the man who was supposed to run the state like a business actually trashed the state’s credit rating. Fancy that. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 10:54 am: Rauner, Raunerites, - Lucky Pierre -… these folks see the Rauner years and the purposeful hurting of Illinois as good. Lest we forget… The Owl … Ron Sandack? “I’m frustrated too but taking steps to reform Illinois is more important than a short term budget stalemate” Yeah, that stalemate lasted a whole General Assembly, Rauner signing only one budget in FOUR years, and Sandack flying away, who-ing. Crain’s said it best; “By nearly every measure, the state is worse off since Rauner took office” Charts like this are a reminder. - Back to the Future - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:03 am: Liked the chart. Looks like Pat Quinn did a pretty good job on managing the state’s finances. He actually funded the pension funds, tried to pass balanced budgets each year and Tier 2 certainly helped right the ship. - Been There - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:04 am: It would be interesting to see what our rating would be if the Fair Tax had passed. Especially if we used it to pay down debt. - Lucky Pierre - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:06 am: OW Lest we forget about the destruction of Illinois and the 10 downgrades during the three consecutive terms before Rauner was elected when Democrats had total control of Springfield. Whose fault is that? - Obamas Puppy - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:10 am: Prepare for IPI to spin this into a fianacial apocalypse. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:16 am: ===Lest we forget === 1) You cheered the destruction. So you can’t cheer destruction by Rauner and then not cheer the same results for… “…the 10 downgrades during the three consecutive terms before…” Good try. No. I have the receipts. 2) You also said downgrades didn’t matter. I have those receipts too. How can they not matter for Rauner but matter… “…the 10 downgrades during the three consecutive terms before…” Again, good try, no. So, you now admit Pritzker is outperforming Rauner? This chart… - Joe Bidenopolous - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:16 am: Hinz reports on politics for the state’s leading business publication and he needed a chart to tell him that credit ratings have improved under Pritzker? What a jamoke - ChicagoBars - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:17 am: Anyone seen similar charts for Cook County and City of Chicago ratings over similar time frame? - Amalia - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:20 am: Rauner Ruin - JS Mill - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:20 am: =and Tier 2 certainly helped right the ship.= That would be a very subjective righting of the ship. Since Tier 2 passed, and almost immediately upon its passing, those taking educator licensure tests of any kind dropped by 75%. Tier 2 was one (not all) of the reasons. And now we can’t find PE teachers. Yes, it helped the state’s finances in the short and long term, but it is part of the reason that schools have struggled to find teachers for the last 7 years (no, it isn’t because of the pandemic). - Skeptic - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:26 am: =and Tier 2 certainly helped right the ship.= JS Mill said what I wanted to say, so all I can add is TANSTAAFL. - Ducky LaMoore - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:40 am: “Looks like Pat Quinn did a pretty good job on managing the state’s finances.” I’m gonna have to kind of disagree with you there, Back. Having Blago as your predecessor and Rauner as your successor, could make anyone look like a genius. - Blue Dog - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:41 am: Can’t find PE teachers. A small blessing. Maybe drivers ed will be next. - Annonin' - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 11:53 am: Hmm wonder what happened to the post about the phony rating agencies, junk housing bonds rated triple A and caution? - Back to the Future - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 12:04 pm: Ducky LaMoore Good point. - JS Mill - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 12:22 pm: =Can’t find PE teachers. A small blessing. Maybe drivers ed will be next.= Brilliant comment./s - Lucky Pierre - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 12:27 pm: I said Downgrades don’t matter and you have receipts? Amazing how downgrades during 12 years of total Democratic control are ignored and the downgrades during one term of divided government are blamed on Republicans only. And now upgrades during an unprecedented inflow of Federal stimulus but no structural change to the reasons the debt has exploded because is affects a key Democratic constituencies like government unions and trial lawyers, so we will be right back where we started when the Federal money dries up and economic growth declines further - Jocko - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 12:33 pm: ==A small blessing.== Do you share similar contempt for members of fire, police, letter carriers? It’s a shame voting wasn’t kept limited to landowners. /S - dan l - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 12:40 pm: Uh oh, here comes a wirepoints response of “we had our intern call the local UHAUL, and they say the state is not doing better financially. Here’s some C string excel charts” - Kenny G - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 1:09 pm: The rating’s would be even better if Griff hadn’t tanked the fair tax. - Lucky Pierre - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 1:15 pm: Griffith and 55% of the voters tanked the fair tax. It wasn’t even close. Probably because it was not coupled with any reforms to change the trajectory of the pension debt bomb and restore faith that Springfield would be responsible stewards of their tax money - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 1:44 pm: ===Amazing how downgrades during 12 years of total Democratic control are ignored=== This only works if you readily admit governors own and Rauner owner no budget for an entire GA, purposely hurting Illinois. You won’t. It’s not who you are. ===upgrades during === I’m gonna stop you there, thanks. The upgrades point to “fiscal responsibility” and other silly things that have zero to do with paying down debt, but your continued belief in fairy tales is as dishonest as ever. Lemme package your receipts for you. You remember when Rauner said that rating “didn’t matter” as governor? I’d just eat the point. The flip flops to the Rauner years are… interesting - Demoralized - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 2:06 pm: ==are blamed on Republicans only== That can be laid squarely at the feet of Bruce Rauner and anyone trying to say otherwise is just disingenuous, though it shouldn’t surprise me that the King of disingenuousness would make such a comment. Once a hack, always a hack. - Demoralized - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 2:57 pm: == any reforms to change the trajectory of the pension debt== As has been stated over and over and over again, Tier II did that. What you really want as “reform” is to take away the pension promises for Tier I employees. Just admit it. Be honest for once. It would be a pleasant change. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 2:59 pm: ===with any reforms=== “I’m frustrated too but taking steps to reform Illinois is more important than budget stalemate” That didn’t go well. Now? Now we have upgrades with an upgrade at Governor - From DaZoo - Tuesday, Aug 2, 22 @ 9:21 pm: ===Probably because it was not coupled with any…=== …improvement in existing specific programs, such as social services, where it could give people… ===…faith that Springfield would be responsible stewards of their tax money=== And it didn’t provide a large enough tax cut for those in the lower tax brackets. [I fixed your statement.] Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.