Illinois state budget (2011-2012)

See also: Archived Illinois state budgets

Illinois ended FY 2012 with a deficit of $8.3 billion, according to a September 26, 2011, study by The Civic Foundation.^[1]

Passing the budget[edit]

Gov. Pat Quinn signed the state's FY 2012 budget on June 30, 2011, with the general fund totaling $32.98 billion after the governor vetoed $376 million in spending approved by the legislature.^[2]

The state's FY 2012 Operating Budget can be found here. Illinois' Capital Budget for FY 2012 can be found here.

Education spending[edit]

Illinois consistently devotes approximately 27 to 28 percent of total spending to K-12 education.^[3]

Money Owed and State Debt[edit]

The comptroller's office said that it took the state 118 days to pay a bill, as of June 2011. As of September 2011, the state had 166,000 outstanding bills of approximately $5 billion.^[6] Nearly half of that amount was more than a month overdue, according to an Associated Press analysis of state documents. Hundreds of bills dated back to 2010.^[7]

The Chicago-based Civic Federation in 2012 warned that the state government’s $9.2 billion backlog of unpaid bills would reach an unprecedented $34.8 billion by 2017 without immediate action by Gov. Pat Quinn and state lawmakers.^[8]

A look at a state ledger provided by the Illinois Comptroller's Office showed roughly $67 million in overdue bills primarily from businesses as of early September 2011.^[9]

State's Credit Rating[edit]

Illinois was the lowest-rated state in Moody’s estimation, at A1.^[10] Standard & Poor’s had it at A.^[11]

In January 2012 Moody's lowered Illinois' rating to A2 from A1. The downgrade to the sixth-highest rating came after a legislative session that “took no steps to implement lasting solutions to its severe pension under-funding or to its chronic bill payment delays,” Moody’s said in a report. Moody’s revised its outlook on the debt to stable from negative, citing the state’s sovereign power over revenue and spending, and laws that establish the priority of payment for general-obligation bonds. The downgrade affected $32 billion of debt, according to the statement.^[12] "The downgrade reflects the state's weak pension funding levels and lack of action on reform measures intended to improve funding levels and diminish cost pressures associated with annual contributions," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Robin Prunty in a statement.^[13]

In August 2012 Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered Illinois' rating from A+ to A because of "weak pension funding levels and lack of action on reform measures." The firm also said the financial outlook for Illinois was negative, in part because the state's temporary income tax was scheduled to expire in 2015.^[14]

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services downgraded the state's credit rating to A- in January 2013. S&P placed a negative outlook on the lower rating, saying legislative consensus and action would be needed to tackle challenges, including the state's unfunded public pension liability.^[15]

Budget Panel[edit]

Enacted in 2010 by the General Assembly, Budgeting for Results is a tool to help government agencies set priorities, meet goals, and deliver excellent services and achieve the best value possible to taxpayers. For the fiscal year 2012 budget, the first year of BFR, agencies and departments were required to justify budget requests based on results achieved in the following priority areas set by the Governor:^[16]

• Quality education and opportunities for growth and learning for all Illinois students;
• Enhanced economic well-Being of citizens;
• Protection of citizens’ lives and property;
• Protection of the most vulnerable of our citizens;
• Improved quality of life of citizens; and
• Improved efficiency and stability of state government.

Proposed Budgets[edit]

Governor's Proposed Budget[edit]

In his budget address on Feb. 16, 2011, Governor Quinn asked the state legislature to consider borrowing $8.7 billion dollars to pay the state's bills.^[17][18] The borrowing was a key part of the governor's $35.4 billion budget proposal.^[19]

The remaining $6 billion in the borrowing plan would pay down other state bills. This amount would be repaid over 14 years, the loan term originally proposed for the entire package. A super-majority or a three-fifths legislative majority in both chambers was required for passage because the bills would increase the state’s bond limit.^[20] The House placed the revenue estimate next year at about $33.3 billion, while the Senate determined it would be about $34.3 billion. The Senate said its number was based on estimates produced by the General Assembly’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability.^[21]

Legislative Budget Proposal[edit]

The Illinois Senate accepted House revenue projects and crafted a 2011-12 budget that cut nearly $1 billion from the Senate’s earlier spending plan.^[22]

House Proposal[edit]

On May 13, 2011, the House approved a $25.2 billion budget for FY 2012 which spent $600 million, or 2.4 percent, less than the previous year's budget.^[23]The House version of the budget was roughly $1 billion smaller than the version approved by the Senate and $2 billion below the governor's proposal.^[23]

Senate Proposal[edit]

Senate Democrats passed parts of a budget on May 4, 2011.^[24]The Illinois Senate added $431 million to the Illinois House’s proposed budget. The biggest portion — $151 million — funded elementary and high schools statewide. Another large portion — $49.3 million — went to mental health grants and programs.^[25] The additions would be paid for with money from the general revenue fund. The Senate estimated the state would deposit $34.3 billion into the fund during the next fiscal year in tax revenue, including the income and sales tax.

Originally, the Senate passed a $34.3 billion budget, $1.1 billion more than the House’s version. The budget was smaller than Quinn's original proposal of $35.4 billion.^[26]

Footnotes[edit]

v • e Budget policy Budget background Government budgets • Cost of state transparency websites • State budget issues • Public employee salaries • Public pensions • States with spending online • Glossary of state budget terms • Total state expenditures • State spending by function as a percent of total expenditures State budget and finance pages Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming Tax policy background Personal income tax • Sales tax • Corporate income tax • Property tax • Excise taxes • Estate and inheritance taxes • Capital gains tax State tax policy pages Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming Comparative analysis of state debt Federal outlays to state government (2014-2017) • State tax revenue projections and shortfalls (2020-2021) • Proportion of state government general revenues from the federal government (2014-2018) • State debt per capita (2014-2018) • State unfunded public pension liabilities, 2003-2018

	v • e State of Illinois Springfield (capital)
Elections	What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2024 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures
Government	Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy