CHICAGO (AP) — The consequences of Illinois lawmakers’ epic failure to approve a state budget continue to pile up, while neither side in the yearlong political battle appears willing to budge.
Business leaders on Thursday, June 9, 2016 warned that lack of action on a budget will jeopardize nearly $2 billion in road and bridge construction — and many jobs — this summer.
A major credit rating agency lowered Illinois’ already worst-in-the-nation rating to two levels above “junk” status, increasing the cost to taxpayers of state borrowing.
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Schools are at risk of not opening this fall. And Comptroller Leslie Munger warned that some approved spending will stop come July 1, including payments to some lottery winners and 911 call centers.
Meanwhile, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrats who run the Legislature continue to blame each other.
“Governor Rauner has created the crisis he so publicly sought. The crisis he wanted when, shortly after taking office, he said ‘Crisis creates opportunity. Crisis creates leverage … and we’ve got to use that leverage of the crisis…’,” said House Speaker Michael Madigan.
Madigan continued to say that Rauner needs to continue negotiations with legislators.
But Rauner won’t take all the blame. His office also released a statement:
“When the General Assembly adjourned without passing a balanced budget, the Administration warned the super majority in the legislature there would be consequences. This report underscores the need for real structural changes to repair the years of unbalanced budgets and deficit spending by the majority party on Illinois’ finances. Every rank-and-file Democrat who blindly followed the Speaker down this path is directly responsible for the downgrade.”
