* From the Partnership for College Completion on the governor’s proposed budget…
In his prior presentations, Governor J.B. Pritzker used his annual State of the State and Budget Address to be a champion of higher education in a way the state hadn’t seen before his tenure. We know that the budget proposal for fiscal year 2027 comes at a very difficult time, and there are no easy fiscal decisions to make. However, we were disappointed to hear the proposal of zero funding increases to student aid and a mere 1% increase to public colleges and universities, effectively cutting their budget when adjusted for inflation. This proposal threatens the improvements in college affordability, access, and completion that Governor Pritzker cited in his address.
Of Illinois’ 12 universities, 11 have less than 63% of the resources needed to serve their students. Without the necessary funds, some institutions are navigating impossible budget situations that threaten layoffs, and even possible closure. This budget proposal presented on Wednesday would make these problems worse. Although the administration is framing this as a 1% increase, the projected inflation of 3.2% would mean an effective 2.2% cut to colleges and universities. And with no funding increase to the Monetary Award Program (MAP)—which due to underfunding had to deny aid to 38,000 students last year—Illinois can expect even more eligible students to be denied state aid.
In his address, Governor Pritzker celebrated 10-year highs in enrollment at our public universities, citing investments to make college more affordable. While Illinois has made strides restoring college access, the proposed cuts to institutions would mean less resources to support those additional students to completion. Ultimately, budget cuts for already struggling institutions mean more layoffs, slashed programs, and fewer opportunities for students to realize the promises of a college degree.
The governor’s office sets the current challenging, unpredictable times as rationale for this belt-tightening. There is no debate that we are facing attacks on our budget from the federal level, but higher education has already been made to absorb too much of the impact of federal disinvestment. Colleges and universities have seen the elimination of funding for minority serving institutions, the hamstringing of crucial basic needs programs, and the reprogramming of important student success funds. This is more of a reason–not less–to invest in higher education, and there is an alternative to fiscal austerity. Illinois has the 8th most regressive tax structure in the country, and there are many viable proposals for ensuring the wealthiest pay their fair share. The governor’s office highlighted a few moderate revenue increases in his budget proposal, and while we support these as a starting point, we must be bolder to gain the revenue we need to support our students.
Emphasis is in the original.
* I asked the governor’s office for a response…
Governor Pritzker’s historic record of investments and prioritizations in higher education continues in this year’s budget proposal, reflecting a responsible, values-driven approach during a period of genuine fiscal constraint. A 1% increase in higher education funding is an increase — not a cut. The Monetary Award Program continues to be funded with $721.6 million included in this year’s budget, an 80% increase for the program since 2019.
In a constrained fiscal environment caused solely by the federal government’s chaos, Illinois is holding the line by reflecting fiscal responsibility and putting our students and families first.
Emphasis added.
This is the second straight year that Pritzker has proposed a 1 percent higher ed increase.
Thoughts?
- DuPage Moderate - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 8:48 am:
I guess we need more and will see more Chinese Nationals in Champaign-Urbana.
- Harrison - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 8:55 am:
Quite a change in semantics from the Governor, considering his party frequently characterizes slowing the rate of growth of future spending obligations are characterized as draconian cuts.
- Who else - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:02 am:
This is just the “a flat budget is a cuts budget” argument that advocates made for so long before the Rauner administration, at which point it turned into actual cuts. In real dollars, a steady amount of cash loses value year to year. But a 1% increase in the face of human services being held flat is a pretty good deal. If universities want more, they can go make the case to the GA that they should get even more while others get even less. They might even win that battle.
- Friendly Bob Adams - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:11 am:
A 1% increase is an admission that things are very bad right now and the state can’t afford to do more. Sad but true.
Also- I would encourage the Partnership for College Completion to identify cuts to other items in the state budget that would enable universities the level of funding they are recommending.
- Irreverent - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:12 am:
Where is the money for a meaningful increase supposed to come from? I’m “disappointed” every day I don’t get a free pony. Last I heard, were already facing a deficit and maintaining our status as a donor state. Ideally we’d just send less money to red states and take care of ourselves instead, but we all know better than to expect fiscal responsibility from those places. So what actually is the ask here? For the state to take on more debt? Defund DCFS and use their money elsewhere? Does anyone have an actual solution, or is it just hands sticking out?
- Loyal Opposition - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:12 am:
Our state budget-making process is fundamentally broken, no matter who is in charge.
Back-to-back 1% increases are not a coincidence. They are designed for politicians to be able to go to Champaign, Bloomington, and Carbondale and say “I increased funding for higher education.”
At the same time, it is intended to silence university presidents, mayors of university towns, and university labor unions.
The implicit threat is “Next year the governor could chose to zero you out.”
The governor faces no serious challenges from the Republican Party. The governor faces no serious opposition from within the Democratic Party. Soon, it appears he will have his former campaign staffer installed as Comptroller and “watchdog” over his budget practices.
It’s hard for Democrats to complain with a straight face that members of the Republican Congress need to stand up to the President, when Illinois Democrats are afraid to criticize Pritzker, and anyone who does is primaried and/or driven from office and replaced with someone more “compliant.”
The framers of the U.S. Constitution and Illinois Constitution wanted co-equal branches for a reason.
No one can claim with a straight face that the Illinois legislature and the governor are functioning as co-equal branches at this point.
- Remember the Alamo II - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:16 am:
=== Our state budget-making process is fundamentally broken, no matter who is in charge. ===
Well, you must remember that even when Bruce Rauner was in the governor’s mansion, he was not in charge. With leadership like that, its no wonder the Republicans are in the position they are in.
- Lincoln Lad - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:30 am:
If Illinois received back all the money it pays in federal taxes, there would be plenty of money to go around… but we don’t. Now federal funding is being arbitrarily cut for political reasons, further widening the gap between what we pay in versus what comes back to the state. The same is true for New York state. I support continuing to pay down pension obligations, as this Gov has prioritized.
- Excitable Boy - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:31 am:
- Illinois Democrats are afraid to criticize Pritzker, and anyone who does is primaried and/or driven from office and replaced with someone more “compliant.” -
Name one.
- Think Again - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:32 am:
= a mere 1% increase to public colleges =
These public universities employ some of the smartest minds- they are not ingonant to the current political/economic environment - have they stepped up efforts to bolster endowment and private giving? The impacts will be felt in different ways. As of 2025, U of I had a $3.06 Billion endowmwnt fund.
- Steve - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:35 am:
An increase in the budget is an increase in the budget even if it’s below the inflation rate. Illinois higher education spending has pushed some students to go out of state to get a better deal. Choices have to made. If they don’t want to raise tuition or cut some campuses, it is what it is. The dropping of the birth rate the last 18 years isn’t helping matters.
- May soon be required - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:36 am:
==I guess we need more and will see more Chinese Nationals in Champaign-Urbana.==
How is this the takeaway?
- Think Again - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:43 am:
ignorant
- Demoralized - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:45 am:
==Comptroller and “watchdog” over his budget practices.==
That’s not the job of the Comptroller. The fundamental misunderstanding of what the Comptroller does amazes me sometimes.
- Demoralized - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:46 am:
==-No one can claim with a straight face that the Illinois legislature and the governor are functioning as co-equal branches at this point.==
Then you haven’t been paying attention.
- Steve - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:53 am:
-How is this the takeaway?-
Foreign students play a very important role in financing Champaign-Urbana. Out of country tuition is much higher than in state tuition. Anyway, these aren’t easy questions. Illinois taxpayers subsidize a world class institution. An institution so great most high school graduates can’t attend there. If you don’t let 6000 Chinese students in 1) you can raise tuition or 2) give Champain more money or 3) make cuts somewhere.
- low level - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 9:55 am:
==No one can claim with a straight face that the Illinois legislature and the governor are functioning as co-equal branches at this point.==
Wrong again. The IL Legislature and Governor are the only ones behaving in a responsible manner. The GOP lead Congress and president certainly aren’t.
- Rich Miller - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:19 am:
===Where is the money===
Maybe read the post and then if you have more questions, click the provided links.
- JS Mill - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:22 am:
@low level +1
This governor is certainly trying to fiscally responsible in the face of challenging times. Left to their own devices, the ILGA would blow up the large debt we already have.
- Lurker - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:29 am:
By their own admission this governor has been very good to them. Since I believe that to be true, and your counter argument is that you’re below 63% funded for operations, I come to no better conclusion than it is time for some college closures in Illinois. That seems the only way to get the remaining schools the resources they need for the success of Illinoisians.
- OBResident - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:30 am:
Of course, it’s a decrease. If my employer offered me a 1% cost-of-living adjustment, I would rightly argue that my real (adjusted for inflation) income and purchasing power were declining.
Instead of finding efficiencies or making cuts, Pritzker has punted all hard choices since his beloved progressive taxation failed.
His economic record is mediocre, and it will inevitably sink his 2028 aspirations.
- Rich Miller - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:32 am:
===inevitably sink his 2028 aspirations===
The armchair national punditry in comments is becoming a bit much, particularly considering the current national situation.
- OBResident - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:40 am:
Rich,
I’ll refrain from commenting on his 2028 aspirations moving forward. However, I’m not the one traveling to early primary states to give political speeches.
If the Gov doesn’t want to stick to Illinois, not sure why anyone else needs to.
- Jack in Chatham - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:45 am:
It is an increase in absolute dollars, however it is a trim in equivalent dollars. The Beer user fees have not been increased since 1984. Alcohol is involved in 95% of Violent Crime on our college campuses. Perhaps we should consider adjusting our alcohol fee structure and amending alcohol regulations. Parents want our children, students and scholars to be safe when they are away from home.
- Karen - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 10:56 am:
No good deed goes unpunished!???
- Who else - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 11:00 am:
==Illinois Democrats are afraid to criticize Pritzker==
Hilarious
- Demoralized - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 11:12 am:
Universities really need to consider their course offerings. There are course offerings and majors out there that provide little value upon graduation from college. Universities should be looking at “bang for the buck” when determining what to offer.
- City Zen - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 11:18 am:
==If Illinois received back all the money it pays in federal taxes, there would be plenty of money to go around==
Illinois doesn’t pay federal taxes. Illinois residents pay federal taxes. It’s our money, not the state’s.
If Naperville received back all the money it pays in state taxes, there would be plenty of money to go around…in Naperville. I’d wager they’d have the lowest property taxes in the state. Shall we try?
- Stephanie Kollmann - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 11:35 am:
They said “effective cut,” that is normal language to use when adjusting for inflation, the governor’s office knows that terminology is common, and moreover knows the impact is effectively a cut, and the response that it is an increase should be embarrassing.
There are more honest ways to claim you did the best you could.
- Norseman - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 11:40 am:
@low level +2
JS Mill @ 10:22 am additional comment +1.
The increase v. inflation cut is normal political spin - pick a side, they’ll change when office changes.
- Who else - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 11:52 am:
==They said “effective cut,” that is normal language to use when adjusting for inflation, the governor’s office knows that terminology is common, and moreover knows the impact is effectively a cut, and the response that it is an increase should be embarrassing.==
Except that it is an actual increase over last year’s appropriation. That is objectively true. It’s not wrong for universities to talk about actual increases being felt as effective cuts– they should advocate their position. And it’s also not wrong for Pritzker to point out that it is an increase over the previous appropriation.
Advocates will advocate and the Governor proposed and will defend a budget. Everyone’s doing what they should be doing.
- Pundent - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 12:52 pm:
=Universities should be looking at “bang for the buck” when determining what to offer.=
If they did they would inevitably shrink. Universities are dependent upon students taking on debt to obtain degrees that often have little market relevance. We need to confront that reality. But doing so likely means smaller and fewer universities.
- Leap Day William - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 1:15 pm:
== Universities really need to consider their course offerings. There are course offerings and majors out there that provide little value upon graduation from college. Universities should be looking at “bang for the buck” when determining what to offer. ==
Higher education, especially at the research university level, is not exclusively a job training program or should be focused on what gets us the most “bang for the buck” through their course offerings. It is also about advancing culture and society through research and engagement.
- Loyal Opposition - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 1:53 pm:
Where to begin?
If the legislature were a co-equal branch of government, Speaker Welch would not be predicting that JB will get 90% of what he wants.
If you do not think the job of Comptroller involves being a “watchdog,” please peruse any one of the 32 reports that Mendoza releases on an annual, quarterly, and monthly basis:
https://illinoiscomptroller.gov/financial-reports-data/find-a-report
If you do not believe lawmakers feel cowed by the Governor, look at how dependent candidates have become on his campaign contributions to get elected, and then read the “muted praise” from Democrats:
https://capitolnewsillinois.com/news/democrats-offer-muted-praise-of-pritzkers-speech-republicans-dismiss-campaign-rhetoric/
Slaughter is correct that there is a lack of “equity” in providing $800 million for economic development in Arlington Heights while continuing to underfund Chicago Public Schools, continuing to fail to deliver on the promises of cannabis investment, and so forth.
But I promise you that there will be no shortage of GOP-backed folks in the fall using much stronger words than lack of “equity” to describe Pritzker. Flip Chicago Red is going to call it straight-up racism.
And whomever the GOP nominee for Governor is will be in Peoria, Carbondale, Rockford, Champaign and Bloomington saying that Pritzker and the Democrats put Chicago first.
Barring anything miraculous, The Bears will be the single largest news item to come out of the budget.
Democrats are not doing themselves any favors by not getting ahead of these issues, and they are not helping the governor either.
You cant argue the state “is broke” when you are spending $800 million on the Bears. And voters “do not do nuance” so don’t mansplain that the funds are for infrastructure and not the stadium. I know that, and I also know voters don’t care.
“JB made $30 million in real cuts to (college funding/job training/education) while forking over $800 million for the Chicago Bears, and Rep. X was with him every step of the way.”
That is the bottom line, I think.
- low level - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 2:20 pm:
“Loyal Opposition” has engaged in so much spin that my shirt is now dry. Total unadulterated nonsense from the beginning.
Here is the bottom line: JB will win by 15 pts. Ask yourself how Illinois went from being a Republican controlled state 30 years ago to where we are today and you will understand why that situation has changed.
- Excitable Boy - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 2:30 pm:
- Where to begin? -
You could start by naming one legislator who was “primaried and/or driven from office and replaced with someone more “compliant.”” as you claimed.
- homer - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 3:26 pm:
The state’s finances are a disaster, and both parties have played a role. The budget needs to receive an actual cut, not just a 1% increase/hypothetical cut from inflation.
- Demoralized - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 3:35 pm:
==If you do not think the job of Comptroller involves being a “watchdog,”==
Proving once again that you don’t know what you are talking about.
- Excitable Boy - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 3:47 pm:
- The state’s finances are a disaster, and both parties have played a role. -
Pritzker and the ILGA have balanced the budget every year he’s been in office, without any help from the ILGOP. The last time state finances were a disaster was when a Republican was governor and deliberately made them so.
- Loyal Opposition - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 4:05 pm:
=== Here is the bottom line: JB will win by 15 pts. ===
You, thinking that all that matter is JB winning by a landslide, kind of proves my point.
The governor’s political and policy interests are not aligned with every member of the general assembly.
For example, Amy Briel represents NIU and is the top target for House Republicans.In an off-year election with lower student turnout, they have a decent shot. If the General Assembly were a co-equal branch, NIU would be fully funded.
Pritzker and his staff do not care if Briel is re-elected. But every Democrat in the General Assembly should, because if she is expendable then they all are.
=== Proving once again that you don’t know what you are talking about ===
Susana Mendoza also says she is a watchdog, does the current comptroller also not know what her office does? You are trolling friend.
- homer - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 4:41 pm:
Excitable Boy–
The only people who think the budget is balanced are people like us who spend too much time in or around government. The pension debt is enormous, our bond rating is the lowest in the country, the GA and Governor won’t cut the budget, taxes are high and trending higher, and people are leaving the state. Congratulations.
- low level - Tuesday, Feb 24, 26 @ 7:00 pm:
==Pritzker and his staff do not care if Briel is re-elected==
Thats why he transferred a bunch of money to House snd Senate Dems that was then used for tv ads for people like Marti Deuter right? Because he doesnt care if rank and file Dems are elected or not? You really need to stop posting. You’re proving yourself to be a fool.