Click here to read the full report. Prior to the release of the Governor’s annual budget recommendation, the Institute for Illinois’ Fiscal Sustainability at the Civic Federation releases an analysis of the State of Illinois’ fiscal condition. This report presents the Civic Federation’s multi-year plan to stabilize Illinois’ finances and addresses the State’s critical financial situation.…
After nearly 19 months without a budget, Illinois’ backlog of unpaid bills currently stands at over $10.9 billion [1]. Without a comprehensive plan to restore fiscal balance, the backlog will only continue to grow. However, even if balance is restored in fiscal year 2018, the backlog accumulated to date presents a challenge to the State and an ongoing burden on its finances. As…
Surveys show that Americans are divided in their views of the Affordable Care Act. With the incoming administration in Washington vowing to dismantle the federal healthcare law, this blog post examines Illinois’ expansion of the Medicaid program under the act. Medicaid expansion was a key feature of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), designed to reduce the number of people without health insurance.…
The following letter to the editor was published the week of January 8, 2017. January 1 marked the beginning of the 19th month in which Illinois has operated without a comprehensive, balanced budget. To be clear, recently expired “stopgap” measures should not be considered a budget, because they did not limit the state’s known spending obligations with available revenue for any period of…
The following are the five most read blog posts presented by the Institute for Illinois’ Fiscal Sustainability in 2016. These posts discuss issues ranging from penalties on Illinois’ overdue bills to the ongoing state budget impasse. Penalties on Overdue Bills Add Up for State of Illinois February 17, 2016 This post highlights the interest penalties that the State of Illinois pays due to…
2017 Civic Federation Legislative Priorities The Civic Federation's legislative priorities for 2017 include public employee pension reforms, consolidation of local government units in Illinois, expanding the sales tax base while controlling spending, creation of a Local Government Protection Authority, requiring the State of Illinois to build a rainy day…
The following letter to the editor was published the week of October 17, 2016. On November 8, the Illinois electorate will be asked to vote on a proposed amendment to our state’s constitution. Commonly called the Lockbox Amendment, the law would put any revenues generated by transportation-related activities in a figurative lockbox and prohibit the state and its local governments from using…
How much of the State of Illinois’ transportation funding has been diverted for other uses? The issue has attracted new attention because of a proposed amendment to the Illinois Constitution that would prohibit the State and its local governments from using transportation-related taxes and fees for other purposes. After winning nearly unanimous support from the General Assembly last spring, the…
Recent decisions by two of the largest State of Illinois retirement systems are expected to result in significant increases to statutorily required pension contributions in the upcoming budget year. This blog post discusses the decisions and their potential impact on the State budget. Changes in Actuarial Assumptions The Boards of Trustees of the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) and the State…
August 24, 2016 UPDATE 3: The State now plans to post the draft waiver application on August 26 and hold public hearings in Springfield on September 8 and Chicago on September 9. For more information, see the website of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services. August 19, 2016 UPDATE 2: The State has delayed indefinitely the posting of the draft waiver application and…
