Progress Illinois

So what happened in Springfield yesterday?

Most significantly, House members made two major legislative moves, approving a short-term borrowing scheme to pay the state’s pension contribution (thereby freeing up an extra $2 billion for the FY 2010 budget) and formally sending the $29 billion capital construction program to Gov. Pat Quinn. But with the hours ticking towards midnight -- when the new fiscal year begins -- Quinn still doesn’t have a balanced operating budget on his desk. And it appears unlikely that he will get one.

Instead, the House leadership is prepared to send four basic budget bills that together, they argue, fund about 70 percent of the governor’s proposed spending plans for community-based services. The team at Illinois Issues explains:

Three existing basic budget bills include SB 1197, a lump sum spending plan; SB 1433, authority to sweep money from dedicated funds; SB 1609, ability to refinance state debt, which the governor already signed into law. The short-term borrowing plan, SB 415, would be the fourth bill in a bare bones spending plan.

“I think it reflects exactly the money that we have, and I think that’s a responsible thing to do,” said Rep. Frank Mautino, an assistant majority leader from Spring Valley. “If there’s more money [down the road], you can allocate more spending.”

If the Senate approved this "no-tax hike budget," different programs would be affected in different ways, because the 70 percent figure would be an average. Some agencies, like the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, are already preparing for significant cuts. Unable to stay afloat while legislators bicker and trade political favors, some have already decided to shutter crucial programs.  And Gov. Quinn would still need to trim close to $1 billion to fill an operating deficit that sits somewhere between $7 and $9 billion, according to most officials.

But Sen. John Cullerton and the Senate Democratic caucus could push back. After all, they passed a budget plan in May that would fully fund pension payments and avoid nasty service cuts. Cullerton is pushing for a one-month extension of the budget talks, a plan opposed by Speaker Michael Madigan.

If no agreement is reached today, state government won't grind to a halt automatically. For instance, it could pay bills for expenses incurred under the previous budget. Public schools don't receive any state aid payments in July, so they won't be impacted right away either. But if the stalemate continues deep into the summer, state employees' pay will begin to run out. That's where the problems begin.

Service providers are still fighting hard to ensure that their budgets are covered. Last Friday in Aurora, supporters gathered at Hesed House, a homeless shelter, to protest the potential cuts. Here's a video highlighting the action:

Former Republican Govs. Jim Edgar and Jim Thompson are imparting some wisdom on their predecessor as well, suggesting Quinn play hardball until lawmakers realize the dangers of leaving the budget unbalanced.

"The key is, I remember in '91 one of the things we thought helped us was finally, by about the third week in July, the members, the rank and file, wanted to go home. They'd seen all the movies and played all the golf they wanted to play and eaten enough at all the restaurants. They were really tired," Edgar said.

"It was an interesting phenomenon. You could just tell the rank and file finally just started beefing so much I think the leaders - knew they needed to get something resolved."

It's anybody's guess whether similar tactics could work in 2009. But at this point, it might be worth a shot. Indeed, Quinn made clear this morning that he's more than happy to stay in Springfield as long as it takes, telling reporters that "if lawmakers send him their makeshift spending plan it will be 'thrown right back at them.'"

UPDATE (2:05 pm): According to Capitol Fax, the meeting between Quinn and the legislative leaders didn't go particularly well this afternoon.

Image used under a Creative Commons license by Flickr user myoldpostcards.