Progress Illinois

House Approves Borrowing $2 Billion
In a last-ditch attempt to avoid a budget meltdown, members of the House voted by a wide margin (101-7) yesterday in favor of borrowing more than $2.2 billion against the already-underfunded pension system. The measure now moves onto the Senate, where President John Cullerton says it's unlikely there will be a vote on an income tax hike this week.

Capital Bill Moves
Meanwhile, the House removed a parliamentary hold on the previously approved $29 billion capital bill yesterday. The bill is now headed to Gov. Pat Quinn's desk.

ACLU Files Suit Against State
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed suit in federal court yesterday on behalf of 16,000 Illinois foster children, noting that the proposed cuts outlined in Quinn's bare-bones budget violate a 21-year-old federal consent decree that gives the ACLU oversight of the well being of children in the care of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.

Midwest Manufacturing Shrinks
The Chicago Federal Reserve Bank reports that the Midwest manufacturing index fell in May to its lowest in more than 15 years. The drop was caused by a sharp decline in output from the struggling U.S. car industry.

Court Eyes Foreclosure Help Program
Cook County Chancery Division Presiding Judge Dorothy Kirie Kinnaird may create an advisory committee of judges, experts, and lawyers that could make court-ordered foreclosure mediation available to homeowners, bringing them together with lenders to develop a plan to keep their homes.

Daley To Renew Minority Set-Aside Program
Mayor Daley is expected to introduce an ordinance today that would renew a five-year-old Chicago program that earmarks 24 percent of construction contracts for companies owned by minorities and 4 percent for firms controlled by women.

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