Springfield Update - Rep. Greg Harris
Governor's Budget Vetoes
July 11, 2008
The goings-on at the State Capitol continue to get more bizarre and damaging. The Governor had previously announced his intention to make severe cuts to healthcare, senior and youth services, law enforcement, transit and other items unless the House agreed to new revenue sources such as issuances of Pension Obligation Bonds (POBs) his source for major new money to fund programs, expansion of gaming, lease of the State Lottery, and undisclosed fund sweeps.
We were all quite surprised when the Governor's Special Session Proclamations did not include consideration of the POBs, which took that revenue option off the table. As you recall, I and other House Democrats had requested a copy of the Gov's budget analysis showing the revenue projections that were the basis for the proposed budget cuts during a conference call with the Governor's staff. Despite promises that we would receive it, it was never provided. That caused many of us to wonder if the budget shortfall was in fact less than the Governor had announced when he said he had to slash the budget.
So, that left the House with the options of considering gaming expansion, the lottery lease and fund sweeps to raise new revenues. The House convened Wednesday and met to hear hours of testimony of expert witnesses from the business community, organized labor, policy think-tanks, local political leaders from across the State, investment bankers, lottery policy analysts, etc. to debate the pros and cons of the remaining revenue ideas.
To my surprise, even before we had finished hearing testimony and before we could even start voting on the revenue sources, the Governor issued his Veto Messages cutting the budget before any votes on additional funding could occur. This was quite shocking and made me wonder why these punitive cuts had to be made if there was a chance to plug the supposed budget hole.
Among the over $1.5 billion in cuts are:
· $97.7 million cuts to programs to provide home care to seniors
· $10 million cuts to community colleges
· Total veto of student success grants
· Total veto of the school construction program
· $500 million payment delays to Medicaid providers, hospitals, nursing homes, etc. (not truly a cut, but just pushes that obligation into the next fiscal year)
· $43 million for substance abuse treatment
· Total veto of addiction treatment for special populations
· Total veto of school health center funding
· Total veto of funding expansion for services to homeless youth
· Total veto of MAP grant and formula increase
· $14 million cuts to Foster Homes care and prevention
· $57 million cuts to law enforcement and corrections
· Total veto of funding for reduced fare transit rides for students and the disabled
· Total veto of funding to downstate transit for reduced far transit rides for students, disabled and the elderly
The list goes on and on for pages and pages in amounts big and small, but you can get the idea. These cuts are falling on the backs of our most vulnerable citizens.
The day after the Governor's vetoes were announced, the House began to consider the remaining revenue bills. These would have also provided funding for a capital program, but were inexplicably written so that if one of the bills failed, then all failed. The first bill the House considered, expansion of gaming, did fail by a huge margin, losing 47-55, amid opposition from the City of Chicago, the horseracing industry and others.
So here are the next steps. The House has been called back into Session next week. It is my hope that the most draconian and punitive of the budget vetoes can be overridden, although it remains to be seen if the Senate will even consider restoring these funds or just let the Governor's vetoes stand. The Senate President has said he may not call the Senate back within the constitutionally mandated 15 days after House action, and therefore the vetoes would take effect automatically.
Also, the House Executive Committee shelled some Senate bills to use as vehicles for possible revenue sources such as agreed fund sweeps. I, and other House Members, understand that we are facing a very difficult situation, and would be willing to sweep surplus funds from some accounts, as long as there was agreement on which funds would be swept, by how much and how the money would be used. There is no appetite whatsoever to give the Governor a blank check.
To me, all of this is governing by vendetta and not governing with the best interests of the people of Illinois at heart. Cutting the budget to punish political opponents is wrong. Proposing a capital program that raises hopes of creating thousands of jobs, fixing our roads, transit, schools and infrastructure, but that is structurally designed to fail is wrong.
You deserve better than 'my way or the highway' governing. I will try to do my part to make decisions based on principle rather than personalities. I hope we can all do better in the weeks ahead.
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