AP:
The Illinois House approved a $56 billion state budget Wednesday that emphasizes education and public safety while leaving some major costs for future years.
The budget, which now goes to the Senate, includes money to expand preschool programs, offer more grants to college students and increase general education spending.
It also would allow for about 250 additional prison guards, specialized treatment for inmates addicted to methamphetamine, new state police cars and improvements in testing DNA evidence.
- Wumpus - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 3:01 pm:
Will the new state police cars have brush holsters? Let meth addicts quit cold turkey, place them in solitary and ther eyou have it…from someone with no training in meth addiciton!
- DOWNSTATE - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 3:16 pm:
Someone said that these new police cars are being brought with Blago’s math and that it will take 30 years to pay for them.Does anyone know about it.
- B Hicks - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 3:51 pm:
Blago’s math aint near as confusing as them there postings of yourn.
- DOWNSTATE - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:02 pm:
Sorry to speak badly about your God but do you know how long it will take to pay this money back.Oh yes it time to borrow again so it will be let’s see 25 billion or more since this guy has been in office.Besides it is Blago’s math that keeps us thinking that the budget is balanced when it is only borrowed money that us and our kids,grandkids, and great-grandkids have to pay back.
- scoot - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:15 pm:
Man, I’m so excited they are able to expand pre school programs!!!! yea!!
Could somebody please tell me what the final vote was?? strictly party lines?? I hope
- scoot - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:16 pm:
Oh yes..one more thing. How did the impeach Bush legislation do?
- What?? - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:20 pm:
$25-Billion??? Are you nuts?? Try and justify that number. Even if you include the $10-billion penions REFINANCING you can’t get anywhere near $25-billion. Your comments on borrowing are tired, trite and most importantly untrue.
- DOWNSTATE - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:34 pm:
WHAT that is since he been in office.Now you can add the fact that if you read this budget you will see that they are taking funds that are earmarked for special services to try to balance the budget.Eight pages of special funds.Before you get on here read it for yourself.Let’s face it Blago is to inept to be Gov. I guess that’s why JBT is ahead in the polls.This budget should help her pick up maybe 4 or 5 more points.
- NumbersGuy - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:43 pm:
I’m a ways past 40 and know my way around both a police car and most firearms (not as an arrestee, thanks) but what the heck is a “brush holster?
On the question of putting the squad cars on the credit card, existing State Law prohibits taking longer than 25 years to pay for anything. I’ve seen some language in one of the BIMPs that infers that the squads could be bought with bond money, but I’m not certain of the answer.
- What?? - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:44 pm:
Downstate, I certainly appreciate your enthusiasm, but if you are going to make an assertion and represent it as being factual then please check your facts prior to posting. My only point is that since this adminstration has been in office, they have NOT borrowed $25-billion as you assert, no matter how you try and spin it. That is factually innacurate, and your assertion should rightfully be challenged. I’m not arguing poll numbers, lawful transfers from special funds (a discussion for another day) or issues of competency. Just trying to set the record straight on one issue.
- SouthernILboy - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:46 pm:
When are the taxpayers of Illinois going to say enough is enough! We have state services at an all time low, roads falling apart, selling everything we as taxpayers built, some areas of the state to poor to pay attention, schools with the lowest test grades in America and numerous other problems too many to mention. Yet we do not hold our local legislators accountable, because we may get a grant for some political cronie in our neighborhood. Why don’t our legislative leaders deal with the real problems in this state? Why not face the real truth and say this problem can only be fixed with a revenue increase for the state!! Yes I am talking about a TAX. A tax increase which will fix the problems not one which adds to the rich, but one that feeds the poor. Isn’t it about time to raise the voting percentage to about 50% and let the people be heard, not the lobbyists!! Stepping down from my soapbox now!!
- Go JBT - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 4:58 pm:
A lot of law enforcement equipment and inmate drug treatment in IL is actually paid for with federal grant funding that’s been available and used for these types of things here for years.
- Disgusted - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 5:01 pm:
Throwing more money at schools, what a waste of time and money. Fixing parents and teachers is the only way to fix schools. Look a Newsweek this week. List of the best high schools in the country. 18 in Florida, 2 in Illnois. And half their population are immigrants!
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 5:25 pm:
Disgusted apparently missed the front page Chicago Tribune story about current affairs classes forced to use textbooks from 1986.
The best teachers, students and parents in the world can’t fix that problem, and your tired old soundbites aren’t helping either.
You think teachers are overpaid? I’ll believe it when you sign up for the job.
- Cassandra - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 6:02 pm:
I saw the Tribune story, but I find it very difficult, given the billions going into Chicago schools already, that there isn’t enough money to buy new textbooks. This is likely a management problem and the principal(s) should be held accountable. School systems across the state continue to be run not for the benefit of the kids but for the benefit of school employees.
No textbooks but lush pay and benefits for school administrators and teachers across the Chicago and suburban area…I believe compensation is lower downstate.
How does Florida fund its schools? Lottery system, I thought, Whatever they are doing, seems like it’s working a lot better at the secondary level than here in Illinois.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 6:02 pm:
“…existing State Law prohibits taking longer than 25 years to pay for anything.”
While it’s better than nothing, it’s absurd we’re allowed to take any longer than the standard life expectancy of a purchase.
The number of loopholes to “borrow” from the future is obscene.
- steve schnorf - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 7:44 pm:
Actually, we are very limited by IRS rules in using muni bond funds for anything that has a shorter life expectancy than the debt. I think we are limited to 5%.
- Jeff Trigg - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 9:41 pm:
Was it $3 million that is going for text books for PRIVATE schools? Sorry, YDD, can’t complain about the text books in Chicago when your own leaders think there’s plenty of money to give to private schools. The average raise for a Chicago teacher last year was almost $8,000 and they can’t afford books? Maybe they should have only given $7,000 raises and then used $1,000 per teacher on books. 25 books at $40 each. I’d say it has nothing to do with money and everything to do with priorities. And the kids weren’t as big of a priority as the pay increases and pension sweeteners.
They are borrowing more money but they still have enough to pay $2 million for Lincoln Memorial IN LOUISVILLE KENTUCKY? Nope, can’t justify borrowing or tax increases when you spend money like that. But if they didn’t increase borrowing, how in the world would folks like Levine and Cari get their kickbacks so they donate even more to campaigns?
- JohnR - Wednesday, May 3, 06 @ 11:48 pm:
“25 books at $40 each”
If you think you can get every child’s text books for a full year for $40 per student, then you are completely dillusional. That might get them a single textbook if they are lucky. Or 4 novels for English class.
I would gather that new textbooks would run upwards of $500 per student per year. Ask the parents of kids who go to schools where they make you buy your own.
- Jeff Trigg - Thursday, May 4, 06 @ 12:13 am:
per teacher JohnR, not per student. HUGE difference. Interesting that you assume every kid needs an entirely new book every year also. Also interesting that you assume every teacher who got an $8,000 pay raise actually teaches. Dillusionally interesting that you then assume there wasn’t another penny spent on books, aside from my suggestion that maybe they should have spent $1,000 MORE on books per teacher, rahter than another $1,000 per teacher pay raise.
So since you are more interested in name-calling, maybe I should point out that an ADDITIONAL $1,000 spent per teacher for books, would equal $26,000,000 for books in Chicago public schools, in addition to the $20,000,000 already in the STATE budget, and who knows what was in their districts’ budgets. But nice try JohnR, even though you entirely missed the point.
- Wumpus - Thursday, May 4, 06 @ 8:44 am:
Numbers guy, a brush holster is a “pocket” or place to hold Blago’s hair brushes.
- Eric the Red - Thursday, May 4, 06 @ 2:20 pm:
Well, with the House session over it carries over to the veto session, as I understand it. The key will be whether the Speaker allows it out of Rules and over to Judiciary or another committee for hearings and a vote. If so, that will be the first in the nation, though not likely the last.
Just having the hearings would be a huge deal. As you know, Denny’s Congress has failed to challenge the President on anything, and the President has rewarded him by not vetoing anything. Trouble is, what Denny’s not doing is what the Constitution says he’s supposed to do - rein the President in when he crosses the line. The problem we have now is that the President has left the line so far behind him that no one can see it anymore.
But fortunately, Thomas Jefferson left us this little escape hatch, a way for a State to force the Congress to do its job.
Warrantless wiretaps of US Citizens?
Admitting FISA violations and claiming I Can Do Anything I Want authority?
Arrests of citizens, in the US, and holding them without counsel or trial for two years or more?
Extra-Constitutional “signing statements” that say “well, I’m signing this but I reserve the right to ignore whatever I don’t like”?
Deliberately distorting intelligence to scare the public into supporting an optional war?
This President George seems intent on accepting the crown that the first President George turned down. His actions, which betray how weak he truly is, are patently Un-American. Period.
Here’s hoping the Legislature picks up the torch in November that Speaker Hastert has dropped
- Truthful James - Thursday, May 4, 06 @ 3:04 pm:
Financing police cars has got to be short term. The investment books state that your asset should outlive the liability is was financed with. So on average, police cars should be financed over two years.