The state of Illinois has decided to hold off on selling its bonds today, citing volatility in the market. Much of the problem appears to have come as a result of last Friday's downgrade by Standard & Poor's, which dropped the state's credit rating down to an A-. Earlier this month, Fitch Ratings put Illinois on the negative watch list.

“We’ve been in contact with banks that were going to be bidding for the bonds,” John Sinsheimer, director of capital markets for the governor's budget office, told the State journal-Register. “They indicated the market had become unsettled as a result of the rating agencies in the last couple of weeks.”

There is no word as to when the state may try selling its bonds again.