The General Assembly adjourned last Thursday after two weeks of working through measures Governor Rauner had vetoed.
The General Assembly adjourned last Thursday after two weeks of working through measures Governor Rauner had vetoed. Here is an update on actions taken this week: ..................................................................................................................................... Illinois still does not have a full year budget
The legislative leaders met numerous times last week to discuss the budget with no resolution. Governor Rauner insists that no budget will be signed without reforms such as term limits on state legislators and a property tax freeze, while the House and Senate Democrats remain steadfast that an agreement be made on the budget alone. Although the K12 education budget adopted in June covers the entire fiscal year, funding for many critical items like higher education and social services is being paid under the stop-gap budget passed by lawmakers this summer. That money will run out on January 1, 2017. Provider payment delays have reached unprecedented levels, with over $10 billion in unpaid bills sitting at the Comptroller’s office waiting to be released. ..................................................................................................................................... Rauner vetos CPS pension funding
The Governor vetoed SB 2822, a measure that provided $215 million in state funding for the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund. IFT issued a statement on the veto, please go here for the latest information. Another measure, SB 2437, passed the House and is pending approval in the Senate. The bill gives the Chicago Municipal Pension System and the Chicago Laborers Pension System the option of increasing member contributions in order to decrease retirement age from age 67 to age 65. These systems employ support personnel for Chicago Public Schools that are members of CTU and IFT. The legislation enacts a constitutional test on a consideration model for further changes to pension system member benefits. In addition, the legislation provides for increased funding to these systems by which the City Council had already enacted a tax increase to provide the committed resources. ..................................................................................................................................... A look ahead