[Illinois] Politics - Hey, at least we have a budget! ... for 6 months...

Athenor

[Full Disclosure: I am an employee of Illinois State University, a Public University of Illinois. I am a civil servant by designation, and am represented by a civil service council to the administration and board of trustees of the university. The thoughts below are mine and mine alone, and I am not a lawyer.]

Illinois. Land of Lincoln. 21st state of the Union. 25th in land mass, 5th in overall population.

Seen by outsiders as.. well.. Chicago. But more than that, it is a liberal stronghold, the home of Machine politics, and the place where four of its last seven governors have gone to prison.

This has been my home all my life. I've never known living in any other state. And I've had the... honor of watching it come to a complete standstill in the last few years.


First, a quick primer.

Here's the current Representative disctrict map.



And here's a close-up of Chicago in specific:





The state is extremely diverse. Chicago is a sprawl that you wouldn't recognize as a large city from its suburbs, which breaks into skyscrapers and concrete at the loop. Downstate is soybean and corn fields in the middle, and hills and forests and rivers in the south. Poverty and racism are still prevalent in the south, or so the perception goes.

We are governed by a state Constitution that guarantees certain rights, such as a pension for state workers and equal taxation for everyone. Wealthier areas often feel that they are subsidizing the poorer parts of the state, and vice versa for "Downstate" (read: Non-Chicago) parts of the state.

So what's going on these days? ... Not much.

The Budget Crisis

Article VIII of the Illinois Constitution wrote:

SECTION 2. STATE FINANCE
(a) The Governor shall prepare and submit to the General Assembly, at a time prescribed by law, a State budget for the ensuing fiscal year. The budget shall set forth the estimated balance of funds available for appropriation at the beginning of the fiscal year, the estimated receipts, and a plan for expenditures and obligations during the fiscal year of every department, authority, public corporation and quasi-public corporation of the State, every State college and university, and every other public agency created by the State, but not of units of local government or school districts. The budget shall also set forth the indebtedness and contingent liabilities of the State and such other information as may be required by law. Proposed expenditures shall not exceed funds estimated to be available for the fiscal year as shown in the budget.

(b) The General Assembly by law shall make appropriations for all expenditures of public funds by the State. Appropriations for a fiscal year shall not exceed funds estimated by the General Assembly to be available during that year.

Illinois has been without a budget since July 2015. The legislature refuses to send the Governor one, as the Governor has promised to veto any budget that does not include elements of his "Turnaroud Agenda" - a business-friendly set of legislation that has a reputation of being extremely anti-union.

This last week, the 2017 fiscal year budget was due to be presented. Now that the deadline has passed, the Legislature needs a 3/5th supermajority in order to send the budget to the governor. We are also about to wrap up the 2016 fiscal year with the end of June.

This isn't to say money isn't flowing out of the state coffers! Due to multiple court orders and other aspects of law, certain payments must be made. Further, partial payments have been made to public institutions and agencies that work with the government. But those are relying on court orders and can fluctuate, or may not even be there at all in the future. This is causing massive ramifications.

Social Service workers are not getting funded.

Universities are laying off staff, and some are threatening to close their doors.

Illinois has a terrible credit rating

Two large nuclear power plants are closing because the gov't isn't providing subsidies, and who knows where the waste will go.

The list goes on and on.

So whose fault is this?

It's easy to look at these headlines and point back to the turning point: The governor's election of 2014, where Republican businessman Bruce Rauner was elected to office to replace Governor Pat Quinn - who was himself promoted after Rod Blagojevich got in hot water over trying to sell a certain Senator's seat. But the truth of the matter is, the state's been in really crappy shape for a long time now.

Illinois has always been a state of extremes. The south is considered part of the Bible Belt, and has a strong work ethic that emerges from that (as well as evangelical principles when it comes to certain rights). The north, meanwhile, was built on a backbone of industry and trade. The industry has been falling away lately, as expenses (such as pensions and taxes) have made the cost of doing business higher and higher. Despite being home to 33 Fortune 500 companies as of 2014, the state seems to be having a very hard time getting jobs and keeping them.

Usually people will blame the Governor, or Michael Madigan, Speaker of the Illinois House and the poster child of the Chicago political machine. But blaming others seems to be what got us in this mess, and there is plenty of blame to go around.

So... how do we fix this? Is it even possible at this point? Am I going to have a job in a year? And how does this affect the rest of the midwest?

I don't have the answers. I consider myself a Left-leaning independent, and I'll be presenting my thoughts in this thread, obviously. But.. let's just say that things look grim, and I'm tired of seeing my friends leaving for Seattle.

Athenor

NPR, of course, sums this up better than I can.

http://www.npr.org/2016/05/30/479995824/illinois-general-assembly-works-to-resolve-budget-impasse

The Tribune has a good overview of the places where movement IS happening in our government... but it feels like a lot of Bike Shedding.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-illinois-legislature-bills-bruce-rauner-met-20160604-story.html


I distinctly remember going to lunch with some friends of a coworker in mid 2014, prior to the election. These friends were conservatives and Republicans, who were afraid of what would happen if Rauner was elected. Everyone saw the train wreck coming, but they didn't want to support Pat Quinn anymore - which was reasonable, as the only reason I voted for him was because I believed Rauner would be worse. Sadly not many people want to step up and run this state, it seems...

lewsiv

I supported Quinn because he presented the only logical solution to the fiscal problems that the state faces: Raise Taxes. Blago, Quinn, and Rauner have all tried to curtail state spending in different way (prison closures, state park closures, museum closures). All failed because the people of Illinois want what they want. The only real alternative is to raise more funds to pay the expenses.

Farangu

Oh hey talk about Illinois that doesn't have to do with gun violence! This is positively refreshing.

I'm pretty much of the mindset that lews has: actually changing personal attitudes and behaviors in this state isn't going to happen. The thing that really gets me, though, is that the final numbers for 2014 were actually close: despite Rauner winning every county except Cook, he only won with something like 50.5 percent of the vote.

Athenor

Well, I'm actually pro gun (with proper training and regulations and background checks etc etc) due to my family ties, so that discussion only faintly entered into my mind.

I squarely blame Rauner for a lot, but.. I'm not sure the alternative is better. I remember Quinn and Madigan arguing over things even before the election, such as the budget and Chicago subsidies. I honestly am not sure where the buck stops with "changing personal attitudes." Like.. in my home city, we just had the biggest plant close: Mitsubishi, because they are pulling out of all US development. So far, we can't find a buyer for the factory, so the new owners are looking at liquidating the assets and maybe subdividing the building into smaller chunks. But the extremely skilled, talented workforce that was employed here is now very, very fractured.

(I personally believe that plant would make an awesome space vehicle assembly building, but the lack of nearby uninhabited land makes it dangerous as a launchpad.)

But again I see friends constantly posting things like how Rauner discussed holding the state budget hostage to drive a wedge between unions and democrats back in 2012. That kind of brinksmanship makes the things in DC look tame.

lewsiv

I firmly believe that Rauner had some misconceptions coming into office. Like every chief exec he had the perception that he was running things when in fact his only job is supposed to be to enforce the laws not make them. I would say that Madigan is just as much to blame at this point. Rauner sends a proposed budget, the legislature tosses it aside and does their own thing. Legislature sends a budget and Rauner ignores it. No meetings, no compromise, just a stone wall. Still, it can be fun to watch.

Ninjeff

To be clear, Mitsubishi closing had nothing to do with Illinois state of disarray. That would have happened even if Illinois was a shining example of a perfectly run state.
It was Mitsubishi utterly failing at having a global strategy and getting caught lying about MPG figures.

That all being said, I cant figure out why we haven't passed a budget yet. I'd be in favor of tossing every single person out on their heads come election time. Repubs and Dems alike.
A little pushing and pulling early on is fair, but 2 fiscal years without a budget? That's inexcusable.

moniker

We're the 21st State, not 29th.

moniker

I was really happy to vote for Quinn. He ended capital punishment, started gay marriage, and passed a capital plan that wasnt just highways. One of the guys I volunteer with at a soup kitchen is a pretty rich Republican who hated Quinn, but voted for him because he had actually done business with Rauner and was just, nope. (Tried to sell one of his businesses to Rauner and just kept getting jerked around about only buying a share when he wanted to just walk from it.)

So, yeah, even with the fights between Quinn and Madigan it was something aimed at getting to yes. Rauner isn't and doesn't care. He may not be 100% responsible, but I feel he deserves the Lions share of the blame. Madigan has a supermajority, but not a functioning one because of a couple defectors.

As for what got us into this mess, a lot of the pension problems were from language drafted by Governor's Thompson and Ryan, but it's not like they can pass the law on their own. Also, our Constitutional requirement for a flat tax.

Rhah

Quinn actually had made some strides to fixing the state's fiscal problems before he was voted out. I believe the red number was trending towards the black. But, it wasn't enough to save his job. Many saw him as just Blago's No. 2 guy.

rockrnger

Rauner just really wants right to work.

Athenor

So.. this is horrifying.

http://nprillinois.org/post/illinois-city-tells-state-pay-prison-water-bill

Local officials said they may decide to turn off the spigot at next week's city council meeting. But Mayor Dane Flesner said if that happens, he worries the state may just decide to close the prison, which would cost local jobs.

"It's disgusting that they owe us that money," he said. "To be piggybacking off of a small town like ours and owing us that much money. I see the argument on both sides, but I'm looking big picture. I have too much respect for the employees and their families and all that stuff to make a knee-jerk decision on trying to stand up to the state of Illinois."
The Illinois Department of Corrections said payments are behind because of the budget impasse, but it's paid Mount Sterling more than $287,000 in the past six months. A spokeswoman declined to say what action the state would take if the water is turned off.

The facility is a medium security prison. The thought of an entire facility losing water like that just.. That's terrible to me. The city deserves to be paid, and shouldn't provide services for free, but the idea of anyone just leaving these people without water seems cruel.

lewsiv

I just heard this on NPR this morning. Crazy. They have a point though. A town of 1,900 does not have that big a tax base and probably does need to paid for those services. I would imagine a move like this would prompt the state to move the prisoners to different facilities or pay the bill. I wonder which is more expensive?

Athenor

lewsiv wrote: »

I just heard this on NPR this morning. Crazy. They have a point though. A town of 1,900 does not have that big a tax base and probably does need to paid for those services. I would imagine a move like this would prompt the state to move the prisoners to different facilities or pay the bill. I wonder which is more expensive?

Right now, the city council has unanimously decided not to cut off the water. But.. it doesn't mean the issue has gone away.