* Ralph Martire…
Of the $53.1 billion in total expenditures for FY 2025, roughly $15.1 billion, or 28.4%, cover “hard costs” the state has to pay, because they’re either required by law, such as debt service owed to bondholders, or contractual obligations, like health insurance for state workers. Since these expenditures are legally required, they’d be in the budget irrespective of the party in power.
The remaining $38 billion funds current services for the year. In FY 2025, 94% of current service expenditures are targeted to the four core areas of education, health care, social services and public safety. Those priorities seem right, especially when you consider that Illinois has historically devoted a similar percentage of current service expenditures to those same four core areas, whether Republicans or Democrats controlled Springfield. This doesn’t mean there aren’t legitimate differences of opinion between — and even within — the parties about specific lines in the budget, but rather highlights the fact that the data show there’s broad consensus across ideological lines about what the priorities should be. […]
Indeed, at the end of FY 2025, spending on the four core services will still be about 10% less in real, inflation-adjusted terms than it was almost a quarter-century earlier in FY 2000 — under Republican Governor George Ryan.
A big part of the reason for the spending discrepancy is that pensions were horribly under-funded in those days. During the upcoming fiscal year, mandated pension payments will be 19 percent of General Funds spending. Manageable, but way higher than it was in the old days, when pension funding was barely an after-thought.
Whoever is elected governor in 22 years - after the pensions are fully funded - is gonna party like it’s 1999. Literally.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 12:28 pm:
===gonna party like it’s 1999===
Happy birthday, Prince!
- Lurker - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 12:36 pm:
I wonder what the headcount difference is. And not appropriated but actual. And I say that because I know several of those areas are having a very hard time hiring. That is, they have people on paper but not in seats.
- Selective - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 1:09 pm:
It’s very misleading to only look at general revenue fund. Illinois Medicaid spending is up more than 30% inflation-adjusted since 2000.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 1:15 pm:
===up more than 30% inflation-adjusted===
Yeah, and half of that comes out of GRF. So, what’s your point?
- City Zen - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 1:22 pm:
==A big part of the reason for the spending discrepancy is that pensions were horribly under-funded in those days==
That’s where my head went first. The state contributed $1.2 billion towards pensions in 2000. Adjusted for inflation, that amount would be $2.1 billion today. Yet the state contributed over $10 billion to the pension systems this year.
Yet Martire doesn’t mention pensions once. He should know better by now. Unfortunately, he does.
- Selective - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 1:23 pm:
Martire argues that we need more taxes and cites a decline in GRF spending on healthcare as evidence. I’m showing that spending on healthcare hasn’t declined at all. It has grown way above inflation. So maybe we can make investments in healthcare without new taxes after all.
- Ducky LaMoore - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 1:28 pm:
I understand why the year 2000 is commonly used. But it is right in the midst of the George Ryan spending frenzy. It wasn’t a purple rain, but a green one. And after 9/11, the party’s over oops out of time.
- Friday Addams - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 1:45 pm:
In 22 years, 7-term governor JB Pritzker will only be 81. Let the good times roll.
- low level - Friday, Jun 7, 24 @ 2:52 pm:
==It wasn’t a purple rain, but a green one. And after 9/11, the party’s over oops out of time.==
That’s absolutely brilliant. Thank you very much.