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Yes, elections actually do have consequences

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* Dan Johnson makes a good point about the graduated income tax defeat in comments…

You know one of the *real* problems is that so many people think of the state as a separate, alien entity from themselves. As if state debt isn’t their debt as well. Or that state “spending” isn’t related to their families — not their kid who goes to a public school or their local hospital or their alma mater (public or private). That’s our real problem.

I think that’s true, but I also think people may have forgotten the lesson they learned during the Rauner years, when critical services were cut.

* Either way, the belief that the state government is a “separate, alien entity from themselves” is at the very core of the most recent Tribune screed…

We don’t know what Pritzker will do, but his morning-after message suggests the fight for the soul of Illinois governance isn’t over yet.

Because there it was on Wednesday, a threat in writing to voters who rejected Pritzker’s wasted push. Quentin Fulks, who oversaw the governor’s failed effort, conceded defeat in a statement, warning the more than 2.7 million voters who rejected the governor’s cash grab that they would have to “answer for whatever comes next.”

The people will have to answer? Not Springfield? Interesting.

First, Fulks was more likely referring to those who led the opposition, not the people who voted against the proposal.

But, whatever the case, the people spoke. We can debate why they did what they did until the cows come home, but voters sent an unmistakable message that they opposed this particular plan to raise taxes on high-income earners.

And so now everyone will find out yet again what starving state government means. Illinois is not the federal government. The solutions are not as simple on the state and local levels as they are at the federal level because those governments cannot just print more money. Unlike in DC, shortfalls eventually have to be made up, which is why pension payments are so high. Magic beans are just not real here, no matter how much the Tribune and your uncle on Facebook want them to be.

So, the Tribune can say “Springfield” should shoulder the burden all it wants, but the reality is that “Springfield” is all of us in Illinois.

* Also, governors can’t just snap their fingers and make things happen. Pritzker found that out the hard way with the “Fair Tax.” Support has to be built for change among the public at large and among the ruling Democrats’ coalition. People can tell pollsters that they support “pension reform,” but they also told pollsters for decades that they supported a generic graduated income tax. We saw how that worked out on Tuesday.

Jerry Brown made deep cuts in his state budget which forced people to realize that California government really does matter. But he did that early in his term. He had time to fix it before he ran for reelection. Pritzker chose a different route and any forced budget carnage now will undoubtedly spill over into his 2022 reelection bid. And with Ken Griffin activated, a reelection won’t be the cakewalk that 2018 was.

* As we proceed, always keep in mind these three things that are regularly emphasized on this website …

2) Simple solutions are usually neither; and

3) Governors own

The adults need to get to work.

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:28 am

Comments

All the advertising on the pro-tax side was about taking. they needed to show how the state had given (maybe showed cuts, or better schools, or healthcare, something). Campaigns are about taking and giving. There was zero giving in the ads.

Comment by Hey Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:34 am
Pritzker clearly stated what would happen if the CA failed. Income tax raised, services cut.
While the tax raise requires help, closing facilites and laying off state employees is definitely within his parameters, other governors have proven so.

There is no “threat” with what is to come. Simply a promise that will be fulfilled.

Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:34 am
In the “Governors Own” silo, I worry that this administration, with a multitude of well-paid Deputy Governors, still hasn’t gotten a handle on the administration of the agencies. Thus, once it’s time to cut, they don’t have a handle on how to apply them strategically aside from the annual emails to agency directors that essentially say: “Show us a ‘doomsday’ budget from your agency that has 10% cuts.”

Comment by NIU Grad Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:35 am
“don’t have a handle on how to apply them stategically”

Southern Illinois. Where Pritzker, and Democrats, have absolutely nothing to lose.

Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:38 am
Great point that this is not some outside entity. It is us. It is our towns.

Most impactful Solution.
Set the LGDF to 0.01%

All that money the state sends to municipalities is state spending. In many or even most small and medium sized cities the ration of state funding to local property taxes collected is almost 3:1 in favor of state funding.

A conservative 10% cut to LGDF would need a 25% or more increase in local property taxes to make up the lost… state spending.

Lets get this ball rolling.

Comment by TheInvisibleMan Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:40 am
Basically Pritzker is going to raise the flat tax and cut services like the Republican voters wanted, and then Rs will ride a wave of anger about those taxes and service cuts to a Republican governorship that wants to do more cuts, and we’ll be right back to the Rauner years we all loved so much

Comment by Bob Loblaw Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:40 am
Obviously there is a trust issue here. That is what ‘Springfield’ needs to correct . . . And it isn’t all the Trib Editorial Board’s fault.

Comment by CookR Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:42 am
At some point wasn’t this day inevitable? There’s only so many times you can go to the well. Even if the CA passed this moment still occurs. Maybe Next year given corona and continued shortfall. Even without Covid 3 years, 5 years?

Comment by 1st Ward Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:43 am
===And it isn’t all the Trib Editorial Board’s fault===

Nobody said it was. I was just pointing out the goofy editorial.

Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:44 am
Now is the time for the Democratic party to use it’s supermajority status. Increase the flat tax rate to 5.9 percent. No one said it would be easy or painless.

Comment by Chicagonk Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:44 am
While speaking the truth, Juliana Stratton should’ve kept her powder dry until 11/4.

I’m also thinking Mike Frerichs might start making inquiries in the private sector before January 2023.

Comment by Jocko Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:46 am
==Now is the time for the Democratic party to use it’s supermajority status. Increase the flat tax rate to 5.9 percent. No one said it would be easy or painless==

Yep, go ahead and lets see what happens at the polls in two years.

Comment by Magic Dragon Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:50 am
Every district downstate where Pritzker makes cut. Bring a sign that shows how much state revenue that legislative district contributed compared to Chicago and suburban districts and extra tax revenue they take in compared to those. That way when you close a prison, an SOS office, take away a grant. You can say that it’s a numbers game. They can’t pay their fair share they don’t get the government service.

Dems have nothing to lose with this strategy in Little Egypt, Western Illinois, and Eastern Bloc.

Comment by Almost the weekend Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:51 am
Is it time for poindexters to whip out their calculators?

Comment by Precinct Captain Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:53 am
What if the reality of the situation is that a majority of the voters actually don’t care about or benefit from the state services that are at risk of being cut? Does that mean that their votes or opinions should be discounted? Would that be democracy? Just asking.

Comment by striketoo Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:53 am
“And so now everyone will find out yet again what starving state government means.”

It’s the old adage: we want state services but don’t want to pay for them.

The people who don’t trust Springfield are not only going to continue paying more with the current flat rate, but they will pay even more with a probable tax hike. No matter how badly Vote Yes ran their campaign, they told us over and over that the vast majority would get a tax cut.

Comment by Grandson of Man Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 10:54 am
Almost the weekend,

“Every district downstate where Pritzker makes cut”

FYI. Lake County voted down the referendum 55/45.

Comment by Vernon Hills Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:00 am
(Sigh)

=== Yep, go ahead and lets see what happens at the polls in two years.===

Meh. Make massive hurtful downstate cuts downstate. Like devastating cuts to downstate counties.

Land doesn’t vote. Worried about taxes? Ok.

How about that local high school… funding can be held.

Facilities close, close a prison, heck make higher ed towns see what it’ll be like closing the university.

Downstate gets the must state money. Cuts there are going to devastate.

=== Republican governorship that wants to do more cuts, and we’ll be right back to the Rauner years we all loved so much===

Dunno after all this pain folks will vote for more pain.

Now, if everyone wants to be adults..,

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:00 am
“voters don’t care about or benefit from the state services”

Sure, close down one, or both prisons in Johnson county, a few SOS offices, maybe even John A Logan.
Sure most won’t mind.

Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:01 am
“Yep, go ahead and lets see what happens at the polls in two years.”
Time for the all the politicians to man (or woman) up and do what’s right for the state, instead of what’s right for their re-election campaigns.
I nkow there are differences of opinions on what is right, but come’on, do something.

Comment by Bruce( no not him) Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:02 am
The Governor should use, and cite as the playbook…

The budget Jeanne Ives sought, that I believe IPI put together.

Just to see how many votes it’ll bring out after showing it.

That’d be an interesting take

…

Now, if everyone wants to be adults…

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:06 am
We need to legalize small stakes online poker ASAP. New Jersey has already done this.

We don’t have many options. Everything needs to be on the board.

Comment by 33rd ward Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:07 am
=== don’t care about or benefit from the state services that are at risk of being cut? ===

Again, the local government fund (LGDF) is money the state sends to local municipalities. That fund is going to be cut, the only unknown now is by how much. That amount of money sent by the state is one of the only things holding down local property taxes from spiking upwards.

Every single town gets this state spending sent to them in an amount that dwarfs their collected local property taxes. Is there some town where people don’t care about property taxes increasing? Because I get the sense that many people are not aware of all the moving parts of municipal finances.

In towns above about 25k people, these towns will have the ability of home rule taxing to add additional local sales and gas taxes to attempt to plug the gap caused by the cuts. Smaller towns will have no easy way to make up the cuts in state funding coming to them.

I ask again, in which town do people not care about property taxes going up?

Cuts aren’t just services. Cuts are also coming to direct fund transfers the state sends to areas to use as they please.

Comment by TheInvisibleMan Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:08 am
===What if the reality of the situation is that a majority of the voters actually don’t care about or benefit from the state services that are at risk of being cut? Does that mean that their votes or opinions should be discounted? Would that be democracy? Just asking.===

Wasn’t that theory tested with Rauner’s unwillingness to propose enough cuts durung his 4 years in office? If people didn’t really care he wouldve slashed away then

Comment by Sox Fan Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:08 am
– voters sent an unmistakable message that they opposed this particular plan to raise taxes on high-income earners. –

Far too many voters understood that within a couple years, they will suddenly discover they are, in fact, “high income earners,” too.

Maybe the Democratic majority should have proposed an amendment that actually would have limited the new taxing authority to income tax applied to truly high income earners, rather than an amendment that essentially only erased the word “flat” as the modifier to “income tax.”

Don’t say “Trust me,” if you’ve given zero reason to trust you, ever before.

Comment by JB13 Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:09 am
Dems have nothing to lose with this strategy in Little Egypt, Western Illinois, and Eastern Bloc.

You know, I doubt there is enough money in all those places to make much of a difference.

Yes, show them, but still have a big budget hole.
Then which suburban D member’s area does he hit?

Comment by Fav Human Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:13 am
~~obviously there is a trust issue here~~

But that’s an unsolvable forever problem isn’t it?

All government is untrustworty!…except my guy. He’s good.

And we all have a different guy.

Comment by jimbo Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:13 am
===I doubt there is enough money in all those places to make much of a difference===

WIU, EIU and a bunch of state facilities disprove your point.

Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:14 am
Just a friendly reminder about the NO vote. This was a powerful. bi-partisan “NO”. There are not enough Republicans in the state to have caused this to fail. The Governor, his staff, and many posters need to wrangle with the reality than many, many Democratic voters throughout the state voted NO. That truth will affect how the state and the state’s politicians move forward. Deciding who to “punish” for this fiasco could get pretty complicated.

Comment by Responsa Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:21 am
Governor,
When you ran for Governor, you knew what powers you and the legislature possessed. Those haven’t changed. The Fair Tax vote was the attempt to expand those powers and the citizens said “no”.

You still have all the control you possessed when you said you first campaigned for office and offered to cure what ails Illinois.

Citizens are willing to give you another two years to prove that promise. You have the same sandbox and rules that were in place when you first decided to run.

Comment by Vernon Hills Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:24 am
=What if the reality of the situation is that a majority of the voters actually don’t care about or benefit from the state services that are at risk of being cut?=

Are you suggesting that less than half of Illinoisans use, for example, roads?

Comment by Joe Bidenopolous Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:24 am
=== Just a friendly reminder about the NO vote. This was a powerful. bi-partisan “NO”. There are not enough Republicans in the state to have caused this to fail===

Meh.

72, 40+, the Governor.

Elections have consequences.

Speaking of… those counties wanting to kick out She-Caw-Go… Start there.

Cut state funding, programs, facilities.

Ya think it’s adults pushing referendums like that?

…

Or, the adults can talk.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:25 am
====I doubt there is enough money in all those places to make much of a difference===

When is the last time you have been downstate? In most downstate communities the local school district is one of the largest employers.

In University communities the impact of the direct and indirect dollars carry the entire local economy, much like tourism in Florida.

While downstaters do not see themselves in the light of being on the receiving end of State dollars . . . . .they/we are.

The Eastern Bloc’s philosophy is in direct opposition to the needs of their citizenry.
These good folks look in the mirror and see someone else.

Retaliatory approaches to this matter share the same bad look as the Governor’s blaming others for the Fair Tax defeat. Some adulting is necessary at this juncture.

Both parties becoming less moderate make this more challenging.

Comment by Go Big Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:26 am
I didn’t see Rich’s post about those renegade counties, lol

Sure. Let’s start there.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:27 am
It wasn’t just downstaters voting no. This was messaged horribly, and the anti-tax campaign should have been expected. The Gov’s messaging played into their hands, and they seized on it.

Comment by Lincoln Lad Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:28 am
=== Retaliatory approaches to this matter share the same bad look as the Governor’s blaming others for the Fair Tax defeat.===

The same folks with the “&@$% Pritzker” signs on their laws?

Nah. Downstate needs a severe healthy haircut, like get to “even”… you *know*.., every dollar they send to Springfield, they get back, anything over that dollar… “cut”

…

Or, the adults can get together.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:30 am
So the voters have spoken, and cuts will have to be made even if taxes also rise. Some cuts will be less visible, like changes to LGDF and ending every nonessential tax break. Some will be visible, like stopping new construction and lowering maintenance, cutting hours or service locations at all front line state offices, etc. Some things will be visible and extremely painful locally, like closing a prison and 1-2 universities, since many (CSU, EIU, WIU, SIU) are running well below capacity, but we must focus on what is actually surplus. Some ideas are extremely radical, like abandoning pre-paying of pensions or moving TRS back to the locals, but now is the time to think about everything. Transparency and showing leadership here is critical for JB.

Comment by Jibba Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:31 am
Vernon Hills,

I have no doubt that country club GOP in your neck of the woods will have no trouble throwing a state prison in somewhere like Vienna, Chester, or Pinckneyville under the bus to save a few dollars on taxes. The people down here voted with all of them and now they are going to be the ones that bear the brunt of any cuts. Cue the James Callaghan line about turkeys voting for early Christmas (or Thanksgiving in the case of this country).

Comment by Southern Illinois Infrastructure Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:32 am
A savvy upstate Democratic legislator would decry…

“Look at downstate, look at central Illinois. They are tax takers. The cuts should be to get downstate to equalize their own free-loading. Downstate should get every dollar they pay in, every penny… but not a penny more”

Why not? If there’s waste, fraud, and abuse, how can thise regions take so much money and give so little?

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:33 am
Jerry Brown’s success in mitigating the financial situation in California is often cited, but usually not fully understood. State expenditures continued to increase every year he was Governor. What Brown did was reign in projected spending. The legislature in California has a history of spending big during boom years and continuing those spending patterns during recession periods, which led to the financial crisis. Brown was governor during an economic boom in California. He was able to push through a progressive tax increase during this boom period and also slow down the growth of future expenditures. What usually goes unreported is that to mitigate expenditure growth, Brown reduced State finical support (modestly) for municipalities, scholarships, social services, and the prison system. In many cases, the modest cuts that Brown made shifted costs to local governments, particularly counties.

Brown’s “reforms” are exaggerated. He was pretty much saved by revenue that was already increasing from an economic boom, with further help from a tax increase. The situation in Illinois is very different. The economy in Illinois is nowhere near as diverse or healthy as the economy of California, especially given the situation with COVID-19. Raising taxes in Illinois (of course, without making any significant structural changes to expenditures) during the current period of economic instability is probably not a good idea. Politically, I think voters see the Illinois legislature as the degenerate family gambler. They want to help the financially reckless relative get back on their feet, but they know all too well what will happen once they give the gambler money. Money is not the medicine.

Comment by California Guy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:36 am
Southern Illinois Infrastructure,

“The people down here voted with all of them and now they are going to be the ones that bear the brunt of any cuts. ”

Stephenson County (NW IL) voted down the amendment 68/31. Just another FYI.

Comment by Vernon Hills Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:39 am
But the largest impact of state spending in relation to other economic activity is downstate.
State spending is equivalent to 11.1% of total income across this 96 county region. But this
average hides much larger variations across the sub regions. The 18 county North region is not
too far from Cook County with state expenditures at 8.5% of income. The Central region is
significantly higher at 12.4% of regional income. And in the Southern 19 counties—clearly the
poorest part of the state—state expenditures are equivalent to 19.9% of total income.

https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1059&context=ppi_papers

Comment by very old soil Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:41 am
Thanks Rich. Maybe it took too long for me to really absorb how deep this thinking runs, but the FairTax debate with my non-political circles brought it home. Our state’s ongoing investment in our economy feels invisible to lots of median voters. People don’t see the connection between Medicaid and their hospital (or their poorer cousin or out of work friend). People certainly don’t intuitively grasp the fundamental relationship between local property taxes and state spending.

But the idea that ‘they’ are at fault and that ‘they’ must pay the price for ‘fiscal mismanagement’ — which is essentially our forefathers of the Illinois electorate just not paying pension debt (and to be fair, although a relatively small share of the total debt, putting in 3% compounding COLAs) — is pretty cynical.

I think it’s legit to argue that other amendments are necessary too (like a pension clause). Or that other structural reforms (like local government efficiencies which are real and we didn’t make any progress on this cycle) are also important.

So I think the opponents of the FairTax who basically said we want our stuff in there too and then maybe we’re open to a progressive income tax should take the lead on their version of a grand bargain.

I know that doesn’t play into ‘the governor wears the jacket’ but honestly, median voters aren’t paying attention in calendar year 2021.

So IPI, Griffin, House and Senate Republicans — I think they won the week to reject the FairTax, but this is their window to define their grand bargain. That’s what we should debate in 2021.

The truth is our pension debt is enormous and scary. And nothing should be off the table to tackle it (including pension income sorry, not sorry).

This is a rare window for a grand bargain. There’s change in the air. And if anyone here talks to Griffin, I wonder whether he wants a grand bargain too. I sure hope so.

Thanks again Rich. It’s our state. It’s our debt. It’s our economy. And it’s ours to improve.

Comment by Dan Johnson Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:43 am
“The people will have to answer? Not Springfield? Interesting.”

Whether you want to vote everyone out or not is immaterail. Punish as much as you want. The bills still have to be paid, and basic math nearly guarantees a tax hike on everyone. There will be cuts, but we are not gonna cut 3 billion a year. So, people who voted down a tax hike on the wealthy voted for a tax hike on themselves, and they will have to live with that.

Comment by Perrid Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:45 am
I, along with other posters, have suggested cuts that are proportionally targeted downstate. Not because we are particularly petulant, but because there is a fiscal reality that needs to be put into its proper context.

For myself, I’ll clarify my position by stating that these cuts should fall more heavily on “taker” areas where republicans specifically dominate.

Why? Because we need to drag those republicans into the game of making and owning hard choices; not letting them sit on the sidelines and carping, while providing no meaningful input toward real, constitutional solutions.

Comment by Hieronymus Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:47 am
==Many people think of the state as a separate, alien entity from themselves==

Many people think of taxes as a separate, alien entity from retirement. Every dollar increase in taxes is one less dollar to invest in retirement savings.

Many people think of pensions as a separate, alien entity from compensation. Every dollar spent on increases in salaries and health benefits is one less dollar that can go towards pensions.

Comment by City Zen Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:47 am
I’m thinking J.B. release the ‘Griffin-Trib Cuts’ that includes every state facility in the Eastern bloc (c-ya EIU) and bans any gov’t entity from paying for any type of newspaper buys.

Comment by Annoyed Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:51 am
I don’t know how every politician in Central Illinois didn’t support this. It was a chicago bail out of central illinois. 99% of the taxes raised would have come from the Chicago area, and 60% of it would have been spent in central and southern illinois. People don’t even vote for their own interests

Comment by Merica Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 11:59 am
=== xxxx can say “Springfield” should shoulder the burden all it wants, but the reality is that “Springfield” is all of us in Illinois.===

Exactly. And indeed, this is how “Forgottonia” was created. In the absence of sufficient state funds, the first to get squeezed are those who have the fewest voices to be heard.

That we voted against enhancing state revenues on the backs of others, not ourselves, means that we who have the least, will have less.

Comment by H-W Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:00 pm
Enough “fun”

To the post,

Governors own. They always do. The governor gambled on the Fair Tax. He had $50+ million and nothing an open field to make a case. He lost. Lost soundly and convincingly.

When you lose an election, elections have consequences. The governor will now need to go to the same Dem legislators he cajoled to vote for the opportunity to get the Fair Tax on the ballot.., to make big cuts, and likely raise some tax monies too.

I’ve always felt, said so too, the loss is the loss, it’s the after and ramifications where the real pain was, not the sting of losing. Welp, that’s where we’re at. The consequences.

My mocking of the “anger”, well, that’s also “simple solutions are usually neither”. We need higher ed. We need Illinois strong “top to bottom”, east to west, but that only works… with everyone deciding Illinois deserves better, we need to find the way.

Those on either side who think a partisan political holdout or punishment take is smart and winning, real dollars, real programs, real people are going to see these cuts and it’s not numbers on a sheet of paper.

Pointed and precise cuts, real cuts, deep but directed cuts to help the state but hurt the least, yeah, everyone needs to get on board to discuss this, or be willing to sit out saving what you can because increasing revenues “is against my core”. Thing about that core is… core services to those most needy and most fragile in Illinois don’t have that luxury.

This is a time, only adults please, let’s really talk about doing good for Illinois. Programs will get cut, revenue will need to rise. If you can’t get on board with both, you can’t be an adult to this discussion, as things worth saving still cost, and the minimum services to function as a first world functioning society need revenues.

I don’t envy the governor. I’ve been harshly and incredibly hard on him and his crew, not because of the love of the political banter, because even in May… in May… the gamble set this situation up if they lost, and this is the pain of losing, not the silly pain of a political win or loss.

I know this governor has a good heart. His predecessor’s ways and these two years already show the differences, miles apart. Here’s where that good heart, a calm want to compromise, and all sides working.. and still… governors own.

I don’t envy the governor. My hope is all won’t look to only say they don’t envy him, but ask how we all can help.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:01 pm
==these cuts should fall more heavily on “taker” areas==

Chicago’s predominately black south suburbs and South and West sides, we hardly knew ye.

You might want to re-think your strategy.

Comment by City Zen Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:05 pm
@- City Zen

Please reread my post again for comprehension.

Feel free to list those districts you mentioned that traditionally vote republican.

Comment by Hieronymus Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:08 pm
I voted for the fair tax. Not because I truly trust state government in the slightest, but because you have to have faith that people will do the right things when it really matters. And because I don’t see much of another option. But I don’t have the trust or confidence to feel good about it.

That’s the distrust of a voter who supported the amendment. Slashing downstate facilities or programs anywhere won’t help the trust issue. Doomsday budget won’t engender trust. Regional payback won’t fix trust issues either. Chastising voters doesn’t help. It might feel good, but it’ll all hurt you in the long run.

Leading ain’t easy. People will vote against themselves and blame you. People will blame you for issues you inherited. People will blame you for not doing the impossible. But this is what JB and every lawmaker signed up for.

Leaders make people believe. Leaders make people want to follow. Leaders get people to step up. So to the Gov, to the 59 and 118, get to it.

Comment by phenom_Anon Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:17 pm
If JB cuts too deeply, the Dem backlash may be a wealth tax like in NY and California.

Comment by Laura Engel Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:20 pm
I am no longer convinced that better information leads to better decisions. Still, here is an approach that might help explain the budget. Use bar graphs and color coding to demonstrate how much and how little of the budget is discretionary.

Interest payments are non- discretionary, that is one color. Court ordered costs are a different type of non-discretionary, second color. Then show costs with federal matching, discretionary but with a penalty. Finally may be the true discretionary expenditures. This will not be much of the budget.

Do this in total and for each department. It will at least focus the discussion.

When I was at DCFS the only large discretionary and not federally matched expense was Investigations. I suppose if we stopped investigating then child abuse would go away. Or at least the cost to the State.

Comment by Last Bull Moose Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:24 pm
I worry about all the people in IL who will lose their jobs. That will create even little income tax money.

Comment by Mama Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:35 pm
==Please reread my post again for comprehension.==

A taker is a taker is a taker. Party affiliation is irrelevant.

Again, you might want to rethink your strategy. Or find religion.

Comment by City Zen Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:36 pm
Will there be enough state or federal money to pay for all of the unemployment caused from not approving the new income tax on the wealth? If Donald wins the presidency again, we already know there will be no federal money for IL.

Comment by Mama Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:38 pm
== 3) Governors own

Of course governors own, the last two are billionaires. What don’t they own.

Comment by Anonymous Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:41 pm
And the election goes on. I just got a call from my county asking me to come in over the weekend to help process mail-in votes. I am an election judge but this possibility was not mentioned when we left the polls on Tuesday evening. Yes, I agreed to serve.

Comment by Responsa Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:43 pm
==Dems have nothing to lose with this strategy in Little Egypt, Western Illinois, and Eastern Bloc.

You know, I doubt there is enough money in all those places to make much of a difference.

Yes, show them, but still have a big budget hole.
Then which suburban D member’s area does he hit?==

Don’t forget that for at least 2 more years (depending on the remap) the Capitol Complex is actually part of Democratic House and Senate districts: Scherer’s 96th and Manar’s 48th. As are the IDOT and Sec of State buildings on South Dirksen, as well as many other state buildings and rented properties throughout the city.

In case due to Langfelder’s antics regarding not enforcing bar and restaurant restrictions, Springfield was going to also get hard hit by the cuts as well. There are actually both parties’ districts within city limits.

Comment by Chatham Resident Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:51 pm
The failure of the fair tax to pass just moved up the timeline of when the hard decisions had to get made. It was nothing but a $3.5B band-aid. It didn’t even address the state’s structural budget deficit. The fact that we are in the middle of a pandemic will make the process even harder. The additional $1.5B tax revenue we got last year from a strong economy is a distant memory. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like there will be a large relief bill coming from the Fed with the Senate still controlled by the Rs.

I advise everyone to get out and take advantage of the tremendous weather we have for the next few days. Winter is coming.

Comment by SSL Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:55 pm
The Sun-Times is reporting that Mayor Lightfoot’s pandemic budget for Chicago includes no funding for Taste of Chicago or the Air and Water Show next year, even if both there is a vaccine and the virus gets under control next year.

I could see the same thing happening with the State Fairs for 2021 and 2022. As well as other historic sites, events, and state facililties that still remain closed or cannot occur due to the impossibility of social distancing there. Anything where social distancing is impossible should be cut from the budget for at least the next two years:

https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2020/11/5/21551241/taste-chicago-air-water-show-2021-budget-music-coronavirus-covid-pandemic-mark-kelly

Comment by Chatham Resident Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 12:56 pm
@Cityzen

Again, reread for comprehension.

Address my reasoning with an actual position or counter argument.

Comment by Hieronymus Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 1:07 pm
The CTU got 16% raises last year. Let’s start there.

Comment by Jed Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 1:40 pm
=== The CTU got ===

A signed contract.

Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 1:43 pm
Wonder how much we can get at auction for Santa Anna’s leg?

Comment by Annoyed Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 1:58 pm
Pass an additional income tax that would expire upon the passage of a graduated tax amendment. (I don’t know if that can be legislated).

Comment by May soon be required Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 3:02 pm
I hope everyone recognizes that we were always behind the ball in framing Fairness: the ballot language was written at a 12th grade level, and the fact that the rates were tucked away elsewhere in (SB 687?) created confusion of trying to explain HOW it was fair. ‘Trust us, it’s fair’ doesn’t work. The thing I heard most canvassing was ‘casinos’ and ‘Madigan.’ There’s lessons to be learned in all that but I hope we learn them in time. So I frankly put this squarely at those who negotiated the ballot language. Cause we all worked out asses off.

Comment by Adam H Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 3:49 pm
I think a lot of Dems voted against not because they were fed misinformation, I think it is a lack of trust with the Illinois government. We were told years ago when the state “sold” the lottery all of our funding issue with schools would be taken care of. That was a lie. Then we were told the “temporary” income tax increase to 5% years ago would solve our problems. That was a lie. Then we’re told when we pass and tax pot sales, that would put us in a good spot. That was a lie. Whether good or bad information was being put out I think most people just don’t trust the state, if they make more money, they will spend more money and our debt will never decrease.

Comment by Tired Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 4:07 pm
Daily Beast: Knives are out for Bustos
https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-house-didnt-flip-but-the-results-were-a-flop

Comment by Responsa Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 4:18 pm
“ Are you suggesting that less than half of Illinoisans use, for example, roads?” Road funds are protected from being cut. I voted for the Fair Tax but I and many others do not use many state programs. Elections have consequences. Let them flow and see if it changes any minds, but be prepared that it might not.

Comment by striketoo Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 5:44 pm
If we’re giing to raise the flat tax, we need to greatly increase the deductible so it becomes a virtual progressive tax, something like 7-8% with a $10,000 or more deduction per person.

Comment by VerySmallRocks Thursday, Nov 5, 20 @ 6:24 pm