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Budget nears passage; Senate tackling other issues

Posted August 09, 2007 11:00 pm

Doug Finke

Illinois lawmakers worked frantically Thursday to wrap up their record overtime session, but the day ended with still no new budget in place.

Dampening optimism that the impasse might be over, Gov. Rod Blagojevich said the spending plan being considered in the House and Senate "has a long way to go before it's anything I could sign." He did not say if he would veto the budget or simply not act on it if it reaches his desk.

Resurrecting a previous proposal, the Senate late Thursday approved a 90-cents-per-pack increase in the state cigarette tax and also was planning to tackle several other issues in short order, including a new budget, gambling expansion, a capital spending bill and a scaled-down version of Blagojevich's plan for universal health-care coverage.

Outside of the budget, none of those proposals have been approved by the House.

Earlier in the day, the House by a 99-9 vote passed a budget for the fiscal year that began July 1 and sent it to the Senate. However, senators discovered what they described as "glitches" in the House version and planned to make changes before approving the legislation and sending it back to the House for a final OK.

House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, adjourned about 7:30 p.m., after waiting most of the day for what he hoped would be final passage of a budget. He said the House would resume work this morning in hopes of wrapping up the 71-day overtime session.

Madigan said he was told by Senate leaders that they found only technical mistakes in the budget approved by the House Thursday morning. If that is the case, he said, the House should be able to quickly vote on the budget today (Friday).

The budget approved by the House calls for roughly $30 billion in spending on state operations. It contains a $600 million increase for education, fills about 1,100 state jobs that have been vacant and fully funds pensions.

There is no increase in income or sales tax rates, although about $125 million in business tax breaks would be eliminated. The budget is viewed as balanced because income and sales taxes are coming in at a higher-than-expected rate and are sufficient to pay for the increased spending.

"There is general agreement that it is time we pass this budget," said Rep. Gary Hannig of Litchfield, the top budget negotiator for House Democrats. "It is not fair to ask school districts, employers and providers to not know when their next check will come."

Rep. Jay Hoffman, a Collinsville Democrat and close Blagojevich ally, said the budget is balanced by "cooking the books" and does not provide adequate money for schools or health care.

"This budget will never be law," Hoffman said. "It hurts people. It is a phony budget put together on a shoestring."

Local representatives disagreed.

A state budget "never does everything you want it to do. But it's I think one of the better budgets we've had in the last five years since I've been here. It takes care of the pension, takes care of the labor contracts, it doesn't raise taxes, so those are three big ones right there," said Rep. Rich Brauer, R-Petersburg.

Added Rep. Raymond Poe, R-Springfield: "It's a budget (where) we didn't raise the taxes… It looks like we'll be able to balance the budget."

Blagojevich would not be specific about what he would do with the budget being considered if it arrives on his desk and again urged lawmakers to pass another one-month spending plan instead.

"We've come this far, and it makes no sense whatsoever to give up and accept budgets that don't meet the needs of the people," Blagojevich said.

The budget also contains about $153 million earmarked for "member initiatives," projects lawmakers can select on their own for funding. Each House member is allocated $650,000 for the so-called "pork" projects, while each senator will get $1.3 million.

As happens nearly every year, some lawmakers griped that they were handed a 1,400-page budget just before they were expected to vote on it.

"It's 1,400 pages put on our desks, and we're told in a matter of one hour, 'Take it or leave it,'" thundered Rep. Bill Black, R-Danville. "We don't know what's in this budget."

Most other lawmakers who spoke about the budget rattled off a litany of increases for this program or that program contained in the spending plan that gave them a reason to vote for it, even if they found the overall budget less than ideal.

"The best indication we might be getting somewhere is that everyone is not happy," said Rep. Ron Stephens, R-Greenville.

"It doesn't meet everyone's wish list. It does meet everybody's needs list," said Rep. John Fritchey, D-Chicago.

The Senate was hoping to take up the budget Thursday night. Senators also were poised to approve a gambling-expansion bill that would provide money for a $10 billion capital spending plan for road, school and other construction projects.

The gambling plan would authorize a land-based casino in Chicago and let existing riverboat casinos expand their operations. Revenue from the Chicago casino would be split between the city and the state.

Senators voted 34-24 to hike the state cigarette tax - now at 98 cents per pack - by another 90 cents beginning June 1, 2008. The bill also allows counties immediately surrounding Cook County to impose their own local tax of up to $1 per pack. A provision that allowed all counties in the state to impose a $2-per-pack local tax was removed.

Under the legislation, $100 million annually from the tax hike would be used to pay Medicaid bills. Another $250 million a year would be used to pay down the state's pension debt.

Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, said the tax hike will drive smokers to neighboring states to buy cigarettes.

"Adding $15 a carton more, it's a pretty significant difference for people who are struggling to pay the cost of cigarettes now," Syverson said. "My fear is we are going to lose significant business for those of us who represent border communities."

The Senate was also considering whether to finally vote on Blagojevich's primary budget objective - a plan for universal health-care coverage. Although scaled back from his original proposal, the plan has never won enough legislative support to be called for a vote.

Doug Finke can be reached at (217) 788-1527 or doug.finke@sj-r.com.

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