Rauner calls lawmakers back to Springfield to pass compromise budget
SPRINGFIED – One day after House and Senate Republicans unveiled a compromise balanced budget plan to end the budget impasse, Gov. Bruce Rauner today called lawmakers back to Springfield for a 10-day special session starting Wednesday, June 21.
“Republicans in the General Assembly have laid out a compromise budget plan that I can sign,” Rauner said in a video announcing a special session. “It provides a true path to property tax reduction and it reforms the way our state operates to reduce wasteful spending. It will fund our schools and human services, while spurring economic growth and job creation. It is a true compromise – and one I hope the majority in the General Assembly will accept.”
If no action is taken by the General Assembly to pass the compromise balanced budget plan by June 30, “the ramifications for our state will be devastating and long-lasting,” a release from his office said.
Rauner issued 10 proclamations calling for special sessions every day starting Wednesday, June 21 at noon. The proclamations direct the General Assembly to consider legislation that will reach a balanced budget with changes to our broken system, including property tax relief, job creation, term limits and spending caps. Should the General Assembly enact the compromise balanced budget plan prior to June 30, the governor said he will cancel any remaining special session days.
“We have tough, urgent choices to make, and the legislature must be present to make them,” Rauner said. “In the days ahead, let’s show the people of Illinois we have their best interests in mind, not our own. And together, we will move our state forward”
The consequences are dire for those who do business with the state, who are being notified that bills submitted after June 30 are not guaranteed of being paid, without a budget in place. Capital projects funded by the state are expected to shut down at that time.
Tuesday, House Republican Leader Jim Durkin and GOP members from both the House and Senate outlined a compromise plan to end the budget impasse that includes structural reforms.
The plan features a balanced budget with a hard, four-year cap on spending, real property tax relief, job-creating reforms, government consolidation, school funding reform, term limits on all legislative leaders and constitutional officers, and pension reform.
Every item in the compromise budget and reform plan includes elements of proposals introduced by Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate, Durkin and others said.
— From the Illinois Business Journal
