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[IL] Senate pushed on budget
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| Contributor | Imperator |
| Last Edited | Imperator Jun 16, 2007 03:55pm |
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| Category | News |
| Media | Newspaper - Chicago Tribune |
| News Date | Thursday, June 14, 2007 09:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | SPRINGFIELD -- House Speaker Michael Madigan urged Senate President Emil Jones on Wednesday to pass the state budget the House already approved, saying the state should avoid a government shutdown that would be "calamitous for all Illinois citizens."
Using a formal letter to buttress his point, Madigan appealed to senators to join House Democrats and "pass the most realistic spending plan that is currently available to us."
The action came as Chicago-area transit officials pleaded for money to stave off service cuts and as Gov. Rod Blagojevich and Jones suffered a budget defeat when a proposal to expand gambling lost in a House committee.
Blagojevich, Jones and Madigan -- all Chicago Democrats -- failed to reach a budget deal before the May 31 deadline, sending the session into overtime.
But the governor's budget office immediately challenged Madigan's plan, suggesting it would lead to cuts in education. A Jones aide said the proposal has "serious fiscal problems."
The speaker quickly dismissed the complaints, saying his budget would provide a 3 percent increase in spending overall, 7 percent for education and allow the state to "live within its means."
He said he feared the state's "most vulnerable residents," who need state assistance, would be hurt and warned that state workers may not receive paychecks in early July if the budget negotiations remained at an impasse.
Madigan acknowledged his budget plan is not balanced, but only in the "narrowest sense." He said the state could correct any deficiencies by drawing down an anticipated $1.2 billion end-of-year balance and carefully managing other spending. He said the state still would have $900 million in the bank under his budget, an amount that is "more than sufficient."
Blagojevich aides said Madigan's budget would be hundreds of millions of dollars short once bills are paid. |
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