One day after Illinois House and Senate Republicans unveiled a compromise plan to end the budget impasse, Gov. Bruce Rauner issued proclamations Thursday calling lawmakers back to Springfield for 10 days of special sessions starting Wednesday, June 21, to beat the June 30 fiscal-year deadline.
During a news conference Wednesday, House Republican Leader Jim Durkin outlined a budget and six reforms — including a property tax freeze, a pension overhaul and term limits — in exchange for agreeing to a four-year income tax increase.
In a video announcing the special session, Rauner said the plan “provides a true path to property-tax reduction and it reforms the way our state operates to reduce wasteful spending.”
Republicans said the ideas pick up where negotiations on a larger compromise broke down last month and meet Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner's push for pro-business changes he's sought since taking office in 2015.
But Democrats, who control both houses of the legislature, were skeptical of the GOP plan, saying they've already taken up many of those ideas and Republicans' demands keep changing.
Republicans said their plan includes accepting a four-year property tax freeze instead of a permanent one, along with parts of Democrat-supported government consolidation and workers compensation measures. Republicans called for unspecified budget cuts of $5 billion and an annual four-year spending cap of $36 billion.
Senate Democrats have approved their own $37 billion budget with $3 billion in cuts and an income-tax increase. The House didn't consider the plan before adjourning, saying more GOP support was needed.
Senate President John Cullerton's spokesman John Patterson argued that senators put together their budget based on Rauner's requirements, and it remains a viable option. He said he'd review Republican plans once they're filed as legislation.
"We hope this is a serious, real step toward that compromise by House and Senate Republicans," Patterson said. "But a Republicans-only, mid-June news conference doesn't exactly scream bipartisan compromise."
House Speaker Michael Madigan's spokesman Steve Brown said he'd also wait for details before evaluating the proposal as a compromise.
The General Assembly adjourned May 31 – the deadline for passing a full-year balanced budget by a simple majority. Now, any new agreements for the fiscal year beginning July 1 require a three-fifths vote. No sessions have been scheduled, according to the legislative website.
Financial pressures are mounting. Credit ratings agencies have threatened to lower the state’s already worst-in-the-nation credit rating to "junk" status unless a budget is passed.
Rauner issued a proclamation for each of the 10 days from June 21 through June 30 calling for special sessions. The proclamations repeat Rauner’s campaign rhetoric for pro-business reforms, longer-term property-tax relief, and term limits in addition to spending caps.
If the General Assembly enacts what Rauner considers an acceptable budget plan before June 30, he says he will cancel any remaining special-session days.
“We have tough, urgent choices to make, and the legislature must be present to make them,” Rauner said.
- WBEZ contributed to this report.
