Illinois GOP governor stands by stalled agenda as state budget languishes

Rauner pledged to work with Senate President John Cullerton, a Democrat from Chicago, to increase state support for education by focusing additional resources on low-income and rural schools without taking money away from other districts.

“But they can’t help us, because the government won’t help them”. “But it is not too late for this General Assembly to make historic progress for the people of IL”.

State Senator Daniel Biss showed joined in the concern for state services that have been most affected by the budget impasse.

Read these excerpts of statements from both Democratic and Republican leaning organizations and see with whom you agree most.

“The governor will be giving his budget presentation to the House and Senate in three weeks”, Weaver said.

The Republican has been a big supporter of charter schools, which typically are not unionized and which some Democrats oppose.

Governor Rauner says he is asking for “a return to balance in this state” in order to help IL be more competitive for employment opportunities. Rauner has said he’s open to discussing tax increases, but only after the legislators adopt parts of his “turnaround agenda”, which includes changes to the way legislative districts are drawn, term limits for lawmakers, and a property tax freeze paired with new limits on collective bargaining for local government workers. “IL can’t wait any longer”.

“What we heard is the continuation of ‘I’m not going to give you a budget unless you give me these items”.

Rauner’s address received a mixed reaction from metro-east lawmakers. “Today’s message was about other issues that we must do to improve our state”.

“It eliminates some special benefits”.

MICHAEL MADIGAN: The evidence is very clear. “We need fundamental, dramatic change in IL…” Protesters waved signs and yelled “Rauner says cut back!” Rauner said his changes, which he didn’t detail, could save IL $500 million annually. 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. He realizes the legislature does not agree on everything, however we should be able to come to an agreement on something.

The Republican governor pushed in his State of the State speech Wednesday for numerous same pro-business ideas he’s been stressing for the past year. However the fact is we are not paying our bills. “College students are not receiving their financial aid, homebound seniors continue to suffer and mothers are lacking access to day care”, Haine said.

Love hopes the program that helped her so much will be there to help future mothers and their babies. If we want to properly fund education and services for our most needy citizens, we have to get our economy to bounce back.

“I think the governor left out the most important issue, and that’s the budget – he didn’t even mention it”, Smiddy said.

However, Republicans weren’t reading the governor’s remarks the same way.

Rauner recently called the lack of budget an “outrage”, saying “it’s inexcusable for us to not have a budget by now”. Democrats have insisted that Rauner is to blame for the cuts, while the governor has insisted it’s their own fault for not passing his agenda. The governor’s proposals focus on some of the areas of state government that need the most attention. They say he’s so bent on union-busting, he’s forced a budget crisis.

In his first State of the State address a year ago, Rauner warned that it was “make or break time for the Land of Lincoln”.

Governor Bruce Rauner gave his plan to better fund the schools.

CORLEY: But from the beginning the relationship between the legislature and Rauner, one of a handful of GOP governors leading a Democratic state, was bitter.

“The problem is going to be many of our members are probably going to say, ‘Well, that’s OK; that’s pension reform”.

“He needs to realize that I’m not the only one, there’s plenty of working parents that don’t have a place for their kids to go to, after school”, she says.

Closing his speech out, Rauner said that to achieve compromise, “we must cast partisanship and ideology aside”.