Dupage Policy Journal

State Rep. Amy Grant (R-Wheaton) is still expressing her displeasure with the new $42 billion spending plan Gov. J.B. Pritzker wasted little time in signing into law.

“I voted against the budget because it was wildly out of balance, includes massive borrowing, relies on funds from a federal bailout that has not been approved by Congress and cedes a tremendous amount of spending authority to Gov. Pritzker,” Grant said. “This budget also includes the mandatory pay raise for lawmakers. It’s an incredibly irresponsible budget that moves Illinois in the wrong direction.”

In all, the plan that Democrats banded to pass increases the budget by 8% over last year at a time when revenues are certain to be short of what they’ve been in the past because of the lingering COVID-19 pandemic.

The plan authorizes borrowing up to $5 billion from a federal government in addition to all the funds state officials are already counting on receiving from Washington. With all the borrowing, Grant is irate over a provision in the plan that lays the path for lawmakers to receive an $1,800 pay hike.

“House Republicans pushed for a responsible, balanced budget that included a pay reduction for lawmakers,” she said. “What we got instead was a wildly out-of-balance budget that actually increases spending by $2 billion at a time when state tax revenues have plummeted. Democrats shut Republicans out of final budget discussions and made sure the budget that came to the floor included a nice pay raise for themselves.”

Grant said she hopes taxpayers come to see the pay hike in the same she does.

“Including a pay raise for legislators is a slap in the face to every Illinoisan who has suffered financial loss during the COVID-19 pandemic,” she said.