Here We Go Again

By Kevin Robinson in News on Jul 1, 2008 2:29PM

Like deja vu all over again, midnight came and went on Monday, and Illinois still had no budget. June 30 was the last day of the state budget. Like last year, the potential for a showdown between the governor and legislators, as well as the requisite in-fighting among Democrats, seems right around the corner.

Illinois's new fiscal year began today, but Governor Rod Blagojevich still hasn't approved this year's budget. Lawmakers passed a budget bill back in May, but it wasn't officially sent to the governor until late Monday afternoon. Even so, lawmakers acknowledge that their budget has a $2 billion hole, something Blagojevich says he won't approve. This has left many who rely on the state for funding wondering what they'll do this fiscal year. For example, lawmakers approved a $225 increase in the minimum amount that must be spent on each student across the state. But "we're not assuming that until we actually see it," Elgin District U-46 financial officer John Prince told the Daily Herald. And state employees are watching their bottom line, too. Last year State Comptroller Dan Hynes got a court order to force the state to pay wages even without a budget. The court made it clear that it wasn't setting precedent, leaving the possibility of reaching such an agreement this year up in the air.

The governor has given state legislators until July 9 to close the budget gap or come up with new revenues. Lawmakers want Blagojevich to make the cuts, and nobody wants to be the bad guy this year - taking the heat for raising taxes or cutting popular programs. So Blagojevich remains "cautiously less than optimistic" that lawmakers can close the deficit. He could still approve a budget with deep cuts, leaving lawmakers to sort out the mess later. Or he could call a special session and try to force them to come to an agreement, or work out an alternative. Here's hoping we don't have to wait until August to find out the answer.