State of the State of IL in 2016

Advocates for social service groups are asking Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner to consider the long-term negative impacts of the budget stalemate ahead of his State of the State address. Unlike even his Republican predecessors, who cut deals with Democrats and their labor union allies, Rauner boasts about standing up to them, even as it’s led to gridlock and a record seven months without a state budget.

But instead of concentrating on finding a solution to the budget crisis, the governor is concentrating on term limits and gerrymandering.

“We spend the third most on out IT infrastructure any state in America…and we’ve been a high spending state on IT infrastructure for many years”, Rauner said. It found that 85 percent of 444 agencies it queried this month have reduced the number of clients they serve since July, when the state’s annual budget should’ve taken effect.

“In this time in our city, in our state, those children, those youth and those adults need to have a place to be able to go”, said executive director Celena Roldan. She says IL is weak and “getting weaker”. Rauner says the current structure makes the state vulnerable to cyber-attacks. From pensions to education, here’s a quick look at the state of the state of IL, then and now.

The order creates a new agency called “Do It”, which stands for the Department of Innovation and Technology.