Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton) urged the rejection of a Senate-proposed budget bill on Friday as Illinois headed toward an unprecedented third year without a budget.
“This budget is a disaster, and this budget is the death knell for Illinois,” Ives said. “It tells every taxpayer who is capable of moving from the state of Illinois, it’s time to pick up and leave. That’s what this budget does. I urge a 'no' vote.”
House lawmakers conducted a test vote on SB6, which would provide much-needed financing to the state, but a final vote was not conducted before the special session concluded.
Although lawmakers will meet again on Saturday, Illinois will have entered its third year without a budget.
Ives disregarded the lateness of the hour, contending that the budget bill needs a rigorous revision.
“This budget does nothing to fund at all our back bills, which are a festering problem that needs to be taken care of,” she said. “This budget also funds things that are based on your demographic group rather than based on just simply you as an Illinois taxpayer. This budget continues to fund all sorts of particular tax breaks of particular interest groups rather than a general tax system that treats all the same.”
The budget will instead encourage reckless spending on costly Medicaid programs, corrupt universities, a failed education-funding formula and a broken welfare system, Ives contented.
“This budget does not look out for small businesses," she said. "This budget does not look out for the ordinary taxpayer. This budget is a gross overspending of people’s hard-earned income going to a bloated system that we have failed to reform. This budget continues to fund prevailing wage rates. This budget continues to fund bloated local governments through state subsidies without forcing us to reform those same systems that created the pressure on property taxpayers at the local level. This budget is not our best work.”
House Speaker Michael Madigan (R-Chicago) sent out messages to credit rating agencies asking them to delay any rating decisions until after Saturday.
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