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PI Original
by Josh Kalven
11:44am
Wed Jul 29, 2009
1 comment

"Putting His Party Over His State"

State Legislature

That's how Capitol Fax's Rich Miller describes the respective budget maneuvers exhibited by House Speaker Michael Madigan and House Minority Leader Tom Cross this past spring.  Pivoting off of Steve Huntley's Sun-Times column on Cross, Miller provides the most concise ...

PI Original
by Adam Doster
10:18am
Tue Jul 28, 2009
4 comments

Debunking Dillard's Delusions

Election 2010

Once Attorney General Lisa Madigan made her electoral plans official, it didn't take long for State Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale) to jump into the 2010 gubernatorial race. In a recent interview with Rockford Register Star columnist Chuck Sweeny, Dillard touts his ...

PI Original
by Angela Caputo
5:28pm
Mon Jul 27, 2009

Del Valle: Gutting Language Programs "Doesn't Make Sense"

Immigration

Since the legislature left Springfield two weeks ago, details out of the governor's office regarding the looming state budget cuts to human services have been few and far between. The Illinois State Board of Education has been the sole exception and, on that front, a clear ...

PI Original
by Angela Caputo
5:03pm
Fri Jul 24, 2009
1 comment

Number Of The Day: $10.4 Billion

State Legislature

When the General Assembly agreed to balance this year's budget by racking up billions in new debt and pushing off billions more in overdue bills, there was no denying that the budget next year would include a massive hole. But how big would it be? Voices For ...

PI Original
by Angela Caputo
1:33pm
Fri Jul 24, 2009

Untangling The Budget Mess

Taxes

More than three weeks into the new fiscal year, nonprofits are still
playing the waiting game. The decision on their funding levels for FY
2010 rests with Gov. Pat Quinn, all thanks to a stopgap budget passed
by the General Assembly last week that requires him to free up ...

PI Original
by Progress Illinois
9:18am
Fri Jul 24, 2009
2 comments

Leaders Lead, Regardless Of The Consequences

Education

Fifty-five
days after the Illinois Senate Democrats passed House Bill 174, a tax
reform measure to balance the state budget, the General Assembly left
Springfield without the budget we hoped for. In fear of a government
shutdown and with no consensus on revenue ...

PI Original
by Josh Kalven
1:39pm
Thu Jul 23, 2009
1 comment

Our Existing "Two-Tiered" Pension System

State Legislature

In a lengthy editorial today, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch highlights the state's chronic underfunding of its pension obligations.  As budget experts on all sides of the political spectrum have noted, lawmakers have for decades used the pension system as a credit card of sorts...

PI Original
by Josh Kalven
5:00pm
Wed Jul 22, 2009

DeKalb Social Service Provider: I Have To "Pull The Plug"

State Legislature

This week, Rockford public radio station WNIJ aired a commentary from Pam Wiseman, executive director of Safe Passage, a domestic violence shelter in DeKalb.  In the three-minute clip, she describes the ongoing uncertainty about FY 2010 state funding levels, which has plagued ...

PI Original
by Adam Doster
2:19pm
Wed Jul 22, 2009
1 comment

Pantagraph Violates The "Civic Fed" Rule

Media

Fresh off an editorial in which they called on lawmakers in Springfield to enact "longer range changes that will put Illinois on more solid footing," the Pantagraph editorial board today detailed the impact of the state's stop-gap budget on social service providers...