South West Illinois News

Rep. Dave Severin (R-Benton) recently took to social media to express his concerns related to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s State of the State address.

“The Governor today laid out a spending plan that I am concerned will put taxpayers on the hook for future tax increases,” Severin wrote in a Feb. 15 Facebook post. “The promises of increased funding for programs sounds good, but we have to investigate each line item through the appropriations process to ensure that we are not setting ourselves up for future financial failure. We have seen record spending budgets clear the General Assembly for several years in a row now.”

Severin expanded that statement in a news release on his official website where he explained that the federal COVID funding is running out and that the state needs to be prepared for an expected downward trend in revenues due to a recession

“It’s time to get real about what our state government can and cannot afford,” Severin said in the statement. “Today’s speech is just the first step in a long budget making process. We are talking about spending the people’s money, and that means the people deserve to know where every nickel is being spent. That means no more late-night budgets dropped on our desks with one hour to review them. I am calling for openness, transparency, and a renewed effort to exercise fiscal discipline to ensure the budget is balanced and our spending is sustainable without asking people and families for more of their hard-earned money.”

In his State of the State address, Pritzker touted economic progress and highlighted several priorities, like universal preschool for all 3- and 4-year-olds in the state.

“We’ve reduced the burden on Illinois taxpayers by eliminating hundreds of millions of dollars in interest payments,” Pritzker said in the speech. “We’ve reduced taxes on those who can least afford them, and we’re finally investing in what really matters — improving education and making college more affordable, modernizing our transportation systems, improving public safety and assisting law enforcement to make our neighborhoods safer, reducing homelessness and increasing mental healthcare, cutting taxes and fees on small businesses, attracting new businesses, giving more state revenue to local governments and schools so they can stop raising your property taxes, and so much more. Getting our fiscal house in order is improving our economy, which crossed the threshold of $1 trillion in GDP at the end of last year.”

Pritzker also marked fiscal progress in the address.

“What was once an Illinois with $17 billion in overdue bills is now an Illinois that pays its bills on time,” Pritzker said. “What was once an Illinois that went years without a budget is now an Illinois that has passed four balanced budgets in a row. What was once a state with no cushion to protect it in an economic downturn is now an Illinois on track to have a $2.3 billion Rainy Day Fund. What was once an Illinois with a credit rating on the verge of junk status is now an Illinois getting credit upgrades. Our fiscal progress is remarkable. Remember the $230 million in College Illinois debt? Paid. Remember the $900 million in group health insurance debt? Paid. How about the $800 million Thompson center liability? Paid. $4.5 billion Unemployment Trust Fund debt? Paid. The $1.3 billion debt owed to Illinois’ treasury funds swept by previous governors? Paid. $8 billion of overdue bills? Paid.”