A top official with Gov. Bruce Rauner's office confirms Illinois will restore $26 million in funding for a tobacco quitline, programs for autistic children and other social service grants.
Projections show the state is taking in more money than expected. While some cuts will remain, the windfall frees up money to reverse the cuts Rauner made with little warning on Good Friday, in early April.
The news has Joanne Guthrie-Gard beaming.
"I'm ecstatic," she said. "I'm so excited."
Guthrie-Gard's 23-year-old daughter has epilepsy, and she credits the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Chicago for its support. An epilepsy grant was among those cut just before Easter because Rauner says the state didn't have the money.
Guthrie-Gard has been coming to the Capitol since. She came in protest at first, but she was gratified when senators pushed through a deal that could have restored the money.
But that plan stalled.
"Let me put it this way," Guthrie-Gard said Thursday afternoon at the statehouse, on yet another advocacy trip. "I think we've experienced whiplash about four times in the last three weeks."
The Rauner aide said no more cuts are coming this budget year. But that ends in June, and much deeper cuts are possible for next year.
A bipartisan deal passed to fill a $1.6 billion fiscal hole for this year relied on sweeps of special state funds and a separate round of cuts that reduced agencies' funding by 2.25 percent. That resulted in fewer Monetary Award Program, or MAP, tuition waivers for low-income college students, and lower Medicaid reimbursements.
The governor's office says there's no chance any of those cuts will be reversed.
However, the divide between lawmakers over the state budget appears to be developing more.
Governor Bruce Rauner has been highly critical of Illinois' past budgeting practices.
"For far too long we have been living beyond our means,” Rauner said when he introduced his budget plan in February. “Spending money that Illinois taxpayers could not afford."
Rauner said no more. His plan to close a $6 billion budget gap --- without borrowing or new taxes -- would rely mostly on cuts, along with a projected $2.2 billion in savings from reductions to state workers' pensions.
Democratic leaders decried that as unfeasible from the beginning and say there's no way Illinois could achieve those savings that quickly. Now, a memo from Senate Democrats outlines nearly $3.6 billion worth of more problems.
The memo says Rauner's plan assumes false savings.
The Democrats say much of Rauner's plan requires either changes to state law, federal approval, or a deal with unions; in other cases, cuts -- like to Human services programs -- would put Illinois in violation of court orders.
