South Central Reporter

State Rep. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) is hoping to see Gov. J.B. Pritzker honor at least some of the points he made during his recent state of the state address.

“I like some of the things he said about getting our fiscal house in order,” Bryant said. “It’s time to pass some of that on to taxpayers.”

With the new budget scheduled to go into effect on July 1, Pritzker proposed a $112.5 billion spending plan that includes providing up to $1 billion in tax relief, steering more than minimum payments into public sector pensions and putting hundreds of millions into the state's ravaged rainy day fund.

As much as $45.5 million would come from the state's general revenue fund with the other funds being federal pass-through dollars.

For fiscal year 2022, Pritzker laid out a proposed total budget of $95.5 billion, with $41.6 billion deriving from state funds.

With the state’s unfunded pension liability having already soared in the neighborhood of $140 billion, the administration is also proposing fully funding the required contribution of $9.6 billion with an additional $500 million infusion. The move is expected to reduce unfunded liability by a shade under $2 billion.

Bryant is keeping close watch over it all and is desperately hoping Republicans come to have more of a say on how things play out.  

“The governor had a lot of new and expanded programs,” she said. “We’ve talked a lot about the need, if we’re going to get our fiscal house in order, to make sure we don't have new and expanded programs right now. I hope that you’re going to give a seat at the 'grown-up table' for those of us that have good ideas. I think Republicans have some excellent ideas on how to make permanent changes and permanent tax relief to the taxpayers to the state rather than election-year gimmicks.”