By Jamey Dunn
The House passed what some have dubbed a “middle of the road” budget, which keeps many areas of state government funded at current levels.
Under current law, the state will lose nearly $2 billion in revenue next fiscal year when the income tax increase begins to roll back. The income tax rates are set step down from 5 percent for individuals to 3.75 percent and from 7 percent for corporations to 5.25 percent half way through Fiscal Year 2015.
Earlier this month, the House voted to approve a nearly $38 billion budget, which would have required an extension of the current income tax rates to fund. However, House Speaker Michael Madigan later said that there were not enough votes in his chamber to extend the current rates. The House then rejected a so-called “doomsday budget plan,” with only five members voting in favor of the bill. That proposal would have made deep cuts to education and human services.
On Tuesday, the House approved with little debate a budget that would spend about $35 billion and not require an extension of the tax rate. After the bills passed, Madigan used a parliamentary procedure to block them from going directly to the Senate. Senate and House Democrats are working together on the plan in the hopes of getting it through both chambers before the regular legislative session is scheduled to adjourn at midnight on Saturday.
Debate on the bills was lacking in the House in part because lawmakers on both sides of the aisle were uncertain about the details of the budget. For example, none of the key budgeting players in the chamber were able to give a definitive answer on the total spending number for the plan. All the responses were between $35 billion and $36 billion, but nobody knew the number spot on.
The bills were worked out in House budgeting committees, but many Republicans on those committees said they were not included in negotiations. Complaints aired by Republicans on the floor were primarily about the process and not the specifics of the budget itself, which they say they got this morning. “This is not a good budgeting process when you don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t know what you’re advancing,” said Rep. Ron Sandack, a Downers Grove Republican.
“I guess that the speed-reading classes that you’ve taken are paying off over there. Thank God. But the process has been a complete joke,” Elmhurst Republican Rep. Dennis Reboletti said to Democrats on the House floor. “You do this every year, and then you’re surprised that we’re not working with you, or that we’re angry or frustrated.”
Democrats said they tried to include Republicans, but that many did not attend meetings held budgeting committees yesterday. They say that because Republicans have been unwilling to vote for budgets in recent years, they likely would not have been in favor of the plan, no matter what the process.
Those Democrats who crafted the proposal were able to keep the budget relatively flat by tapping into some well-worn creative budgeting tactics, such as delaying payment for some spending obligations, adjusting revenue estimates up and borrowing from funds outside of general spending. Democrats say that the moves freed up about $2 billion. Most of the tactics are short-term solutions or one-time sources of funding.
Republicans, who had previously accused Democrats of exaggerating how painful a budget would be to try to pass an extension of the income tax rates, reacted with sarcasm to the plan unveiled today. “Magically, hundreds of millions of dollars extra have been found. Shocking. I am so surprised that now we’ve looked under the couch cushions and found a little bit of extra walking-around money to sprinkle around the budget,” Reboletti said.
But flat funding does not mean that the budget picture is rosy. The bill backlog would grow substantially and there would be layoffs under the plan, according to those who worked most closely on it. “As the year goes on, things are going to get tighter and tighter in our departments,” said Rep. Greg Harris, who chairs the House human services budgeting committee. Harris said that the budget would likely increase the state’s stack of unpaid bills by “a couple billions of dollars” and would result in “thousands” of layoffs of state workers. The backlog is expected to be about $5.6 billion by the end of the current fiscal year.
The House breaks down the budgeting process into general areas of K-12 education, human services, general services, higher education and public safety. The only of these areas that would see a funding increase would be K-12 education, which would go up $167 million over the current fiscal year. The increase would be needed to keep General State Aid to schools prorated at just under 89 percent and to pay for student assessments that are part of the state’s transition to the Common Core curriculum standards. While K-12 education will see a slight increase, Homewood Democratic Rep. William Davis, who is the chair of the House K-12 education budgeting committee, said that it is not enough to meet the need in many Illinois schools. “Is this the budget that I wanted? Absolutely not,” he said. General State Aid to schools has not been fully funded for the last three years.
Harris said that as the fiscal year wears on, state agencies would start to feel the squeeze of trying to stick to flat funding, while the cost of doing business grows. He said that services required by law our under court orders would likely start to crowd out other programs. “It’s going to be after January 1 that you see the problems beginning to add up.”
Harris said that if nothing changes, the budget would be in an even worse place in Fiscal Year 2016. “Next fiscal year, we’re going to be in a terrible spot because next year we will have lost a full year’s worth of revenue.”
Showing posts with label human services. Show all posts
Showing posts with label human services. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Illinois Senate approves more budget bills
By Jamey Dunn
Illinois Senate Republicans supported legislation today to spend unexpected tax revenue on the state’s old bills but rejected the rest of a budget plan crafted by Democrats of both legislative chambers.
Education spending, which the Senate approved Wednesday, passed without Republican support, and the vote totals for the rest of the about $35 billion Fiscal Year 2014 budget looked the same today. The one exception was that most of the Republicans in the chamber voted in favor of a measure that would put an unexpected income tax revenue windfall toward the state’s stack of unpaid bills. House Bill 206, the supplemental appropriation that would pay down bills this fiscal year, now heads the Gov. Pat Quinn. The education budget bills — Senate Bill 2555 and SB 2556 — await a vote in the House. The legislation also includes the payments to debt service, employee health benefits and pensions. “I think it’s a responsible use of the additional billion dollars that came in from income tax,” said McHenry Republican Sen. Pamela Althoff.
House and Senate Democrats crafted the budget this year after cutting Republicans out of talks a few weeks ago. Here’s a breakdown of the bills:
HB 208 is the operational spending for state education agencies, as well as some higher education costs, including student aid.
HB 213 is human services funds and Medicaid spending.
HB 214 is general services spending, the General Assembly’s budget and the constitutional officers' budgets.
HB 215 is public safety and transportation spending, Illinois Department of Corrections budget, capital construction spending for the next fiscal year and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources budget.
The bills give some lump sums to state agencies to allow for flexibility in funding programs and personnel costs. Sponsors said the hope is that agencies can manage spending and meet the requirements of the new public employee union contract, which includes pay raises. However, the proposal does not include funding for previous raises still owed to state employees. Democratic Sen. Heather Steans of Chicago said $60 million is in an escrow account that can be used to start to pay down those wages. But she said she does not know of any immediate plans to pass a supplemental bill explicitly for the back pay. A representative from Quinn’s budget office said during a Senate budget committee hearing yesterday that the administration does not plan to provide all the back pay without a supplemental spending bill because it would likely require layoffs, something Quinn’s office says he wants to avoid.
Quinn and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees are backing a spending bill to cover the back wages, but as of today, the bill is sitting in the House, still on second reading. It could not pass in its current from before tomorrow's adjournment deadline. However, the measure could be drafted into a different bill and still make it through by the end of the day tomorrow. “There is strong bipartisan support in the General Assembly for HB 212, the supplemental appropriation to pay wages owed to caregivers, correctional officers and other state employees dating back nearly two years,” said Anders Lindall, a spokesman for AFSCME Council 31. “Public servants shouldn’t have to wait a day longer for the wages they earned, and Illinois taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay another penny of interest or legal costs incurred by the state’s continued failure to fulfill its responsibility to its employees.” The raises were not paid to workers in 2011 because Quinn said that lawmakers did not approve the funding for them.
Sponsors of the budget plan said that paying off bills this fiscal year with the additional revenues would make next year’s budget less painful. They said the spending for next year fully funds programs and agencies and will keep them from having to budget from crisis to crisis, as has been the case during the past few years. “We should not have any providers getting notices next June that they’re not going to be getting payments,” Steans said. Such notices went out to childcare providers last year and providers of in-home care for the elderly this year. In both cases, lawmakers approved additional spending late in the fiscal year to keep the programs afloat. The budget would reduce many human services operations by 3 percent from Quinn’s proposed budget. Grants would be cut by 1 percent from the budget introduced by Quinn, but many areas, such as community mental health, would be shielded from the reduction. The Department of Corrections would see a $70 million increase that supporters say was needed to avoid further prison closures.
Republicans complained that the rest of the budget does not reflect their priorities and that funding went to programs without proven results. They hit on $1.5 million included for a program that is a perennial target for their criticisms: Grow Your Own Teachers. Republicans said the program, which works to encourage minority residents to become teachers in the state, is too expensive and pointed to historical statistics that show that the bulk of enrollees drop out before receiving teaching certificates.
Democratic Sen. Dan Kotowski of Park Ridge acknowledged the past problems with Grow Your Own Teachers, but noted that it has improved its stats. He said that after the program was unable to show lawmakers that its results justified its spending line, they program was cut and restructured. He said now the graduation and placement stats are better. “When we said to them last year, your data isn’t good enough they came back” with improvements, Kotowski said. “We’re seeing progress as a result of the policy decisions and the changes that we made here as a byproduct of the appropriations process.”
Republicans said the money would be better spent on K-12 education or restoring some of the Medicaid cuts made last year. “Including things like this in this budget undermines the credibility of the budget overall because they lead to the conclusion that the budget is more of a political document than it is an outcomes-based reflection of priority,” said Sen. Matt Murphy, a Palatine Republican.
Illinois Senate Republicans supported legislation today to spend unexpected tax revenue on the state’s old bills but rejected the rest of a budget plan crafted by Democrats of both legislative chambers.
Education spending, which the Senate approved Wednesday, passed without Republican support, and the vote totals for the rest of the about $35 billion Fiscal Year 2014 budget looked the same today. The one exception was that most of the Republicans in the chamber voted in favor of a measure that would put an unexpected income tax revenue windfall toward the state’s stack of unpaid bills. House Bill 206, the supplemental appropriation that would pay down bills this fiscal year, now heads the Gov. Pat Quinn. The education budget bills — Senate Bill 2555 and SB 2556 — await a vote in the House. The legislation also includes the payments to debt service, employee health benefits and pensions. “I think it’s a responsible use of the additional billion dollars that came in from income tax,” said McHenry Republican Sen. Pamela Althoff.
House and Senate Democrats crafted the budget this year after cutting Republicans out of talks a few weeks ago. Here’s a breakdown of the bills:
HB 208 is the operational spending for state education agencies, as well as some higher education costs, including student aid.
HB 213 is human services funds and Medicaid spending.
HB 214 is general services spending, the General Assembly’s budget and the constitutional officers' budgets.
HB 215 is public safety and transportation spending, Illinois Department of Corrections budget, capital construction spending for the next fiscal year and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources budget.
The bills give some lump sums to state agencies to allow for flexibility in funding programs and personnel costs. Sponsors said the hope is that agencies can manage spending and meet the requirements of the new public employee union contract, which includes pay raises. However, the proposal does not include funding for previous raises still owed to state employees. Democratic Sen. Heather Steans of Chicago said $60 million is in an escrow account that can be used to start to pay down those wages. But she said she does not know of any immediate plans to pass a supplemental bill explicitly for the back pay. A representative from Quinn’s budget office said during a Senate budget committee hearing yesterday that the administration does not plan to provide all the back pay without a supplemental spending bill because it would likely require layoffs, something Quinn’s office says he wants to avoid.
Quinn and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees are backing a spending bill to cover the back wages, but as of today, the bill is sitting in the House, still on second reading. It could not pass in its current from before tomorrow's adjournment deadline. However, the measure could be drafted into a different bill and still make it through by the end of the day tomorrow. “There is strong bipartisan support in the General Assembly for HB 212, the supplemental appropriation to pay wages owed to caregivers, correctional officers and other state employees dating back nearly two years,” said Anders Lindall, a spokesman for AFSCME Council 31. “Public servants shouldn’t have to wait a day longer for the wages they earned, and Illinois taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay another penny of interest or legal costs incurred by the state’s continued failure to fulfill its responsibility to its employees.” The raises were not paid to workers in 2011 because Quinn said that lawmakers did not approve the funding for them.
Sponsors of the budget plan said that paying off bills this fiscal year with the additional revenues would make next year’s budget less painful. They said the spending for next year fully funds programs and agencies and will keep them from having to budget from crisis to crisis, as has been the case during the past few years. “We should not have any providers getting notices next June that they’re not going to be getting payments,” Steans said. Such notices went out to childcare providers last year and providers of in-home care for the elderly this year. In both cases, lawmakers approved additional spending late in the fiscal year to keep the programs afloat. The budget would reduce many human services operations by 3 percent from Quinn’s proposed budget. Grants would be cut by 1 percent from the budget introduced by Quinn, but many areas, such as community mental health, would be shielded from the reduction. The Department of Corrections would see a $70 million increase that supporters say was needed to avoid further prison closures.
Republicans complained that the rest of the budget does not reflect their priorities and that funding went to programs without proven results. They hit on $1.5 million included for a program that is a perennial target for their criticisms: Grow Your Own Teachers. Republicans said the program, which works to encourage minority residents to become teachers in the state, is too expensive and pointed to historical statistics that show that the bulk of enrollees drop out before receiving teaching certificates.
Democratic Sen. Dan Kotowski of Park Ridge acknowledged the past problems with Grow Your Own Teachers, but noted that it has improved its stats. He said that after the program was unable to show lawmakers that its results justified its spending line, they program was cut and restructured. He said now the graduation and placement stats are better. “When we said to them last year, your data isn’t good enough they came back” with improvements, Kotowski said. “We’re seeing progress as a result of the policy decisions and the changes that we made here as a byproduct of the appropriations process.”
Republicans said the money would be better spent on K-12 education or restoring some of the Medicaid cuts made last year. “Including things like this in this budget undermines the credibility of the budget overall because they lead to the conclusion that the budget is more of a political document than it is an outcomes-based reflection of priority,” said Sen. Matt Murphy, a Palatine Republican.
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
House passes the bulk of its budget
By Jamey Dunn and Meredith Colias
Illinois House Democrats passed several pieces of their budget today as Republicans bemoaned being cut out of the process.
Both higher education and K-12 will be funded at essentially flat levels, compared to the current fiscal year. Human services would see cuts under the plan, but the outlook is not nearly as gloomy as it seemed just a few weeks ago. Sponsors of the various budget bills say that the situation would have been much bleaker if a windfall of $1.5 billion in unexpected revenues had not come in. “In April, there was a large surge because people sold a bunch of assets at the end of [Fiscal Year] '12 in anticipation of capital gains rate changes,” said Rep. Greg Harris, who sponsored the human services budget bill.
House Minority Leader Tom Cross said Republicans do not support the $35.6 billion budget proposal, the bulk of which passed today. He said Republicans had been working on the budget, but Democrats stopped inviting his political party to talks in the last few weeks. “When it comes to spending ... the willingness to work with us goes by the wayside, and that is unfortunate,” Cross said. “Clearly we’re not going in the direction that we need to go if we intend to get our bills paid and if we intend to do away with the tax increase.” Republicans said they saw the budget bills for the first time last night.
While Republicans blasted the spending in the proposal, Harris, who took over the human services budgeting committee this year, said this is the first budget in recent years that will fully fund human services. “We’ve made cuts across the board but we’ve retained funding in core community services such as mental health, substance abuse, homelessness programs,” he said. This year and several other times in recent history, human services agencies have had to come back to the General Assembly midway through the fiscal year and ask for more money to avoid the shutdown of programs. “In other years, they’ve not appropriated for a full year, and they’ve always come back for [supplemental spending bills]. ... We wanted to pass something that was fully reflective of the realities of each department’s need,” he said. “I would say woe betide the department that comes back to us with a supplemental [request] this year.”
The budget does not explicitly include the raises promised to state union workers in a new contract. But personnel costs are provided in lump sums, and each agency is left to figure out how to work in the raises. “What we accounted for was their FY 14 raises, and they way we did that was to give our departments maximum flexibility.” A bill that would appropriate back raises, which Gov. Pat Quinn has said he will now give members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union after earlier freezing them, was not called for a vote in committee today.
Some of the unexpected revenue would be used to immediately pay down nearly $600 million in old human services bills. Harris said many of those payments would be eligible for federal matching funds under Medicaid. Some of the additional revenues were incorporated to the revenue estimate for next fiscal year and will be used to defer cuts to education and corrections. Republicans expressed concerns that the additional revenue projected should not automatically be used to increase spending in the budget. “We were conservative a year ago, and it served us well,” Arlington Heights Republican David Harris said.
Chicago Democratic Rep. Louis Arroyo said that the additional money allowed Democrats to funnel $70 million to the Department of Corrections to prevent the potential closure of more state prisons. “I believe there will be no prisons closing,” Arroyo said in a budget committee hearing this morning. “Corrections is going to be OK.” The House approved a public safety budget sponsored by Arroyo today. Higher education is seeing only a slight drop in funding.
Chicago Democratic Rep. Ken Dunkin said that higher education would avoid the 5 percent cuts the governor called for in his March budget proposal. The extra funds would give "additional breathing room for some of our communities," Dunkin said. The House higher education budget, which was also approved today, calls for the Monetary Award Program, which provides scholarships to low-income students, to be funded at a level slightly less than what Quinn presented in his budget. The program has suffered cuts in recent years.
The House did not approve its K-12 budget, but House Democrats who worked on it say a vote is expected tomorrow. The proposal adds more than $150 million to General State Aid for schools to keep the state's proration at 89 percent of the recommended funding level to schools. The bus transportation budget will be kept at 64 percent of recommended levels for schools. The new budget figures will also keep early childhood education and bilingual education at flat funding, compared to last year's budget.
Illinois House Democrats passed several pieces of their budget today as Republicans bemoaned being cut out of the process.
Both higher education and K-12 will be funded at essentially flat levels, compared to the current fiscal year. Human services would see cuts under the plan, but the outlook is not nearly as gloomy as it seemed just a few weeks ago. Sponsors of the various budget bills say that the situation would have been much bleaker if a windfall of $1.5 billion in unexpected revenues had not come in. “In April, there was a large surge because people sold a bunch of assets at the end of [Fiscal Year] '12 in anticipation of capital gains rate changes,” said Rep. Greg Harris, who sponsored the human services budget bill.
House Minority Leader Tom Cross said Republicans do not support the $35.6 billion budget proposal, the bulk of which passed today. He said Republicans had been working on the budget, but Democrats stopped inviting his political party to talks in the last few weeks. “When it comes to spending ... the willingness to work with us goes by the wayside, and that is unfortunate,” Cross said. “Clearly we’re not going in the direction that we need to go if we intend to get our bills paid and if we intend to do away with the tax increase.” Republicans said they saw the budget bills for the first time last night.
While Republicans blasted the spending in the proposal, Harris, who took over the human services budgeting committee this year, said this is the first budget in recent years that will fully fund human services. “We’ve made cuts across the board but we’ve retained funding in core community services such as mental health, substance abuse, homelessness programs,” he said. This year and several other times in recent history, human services agencies have had to come back to the General Assembly midway through the fiscal year and ask for more money to avoid the shutdown of programs. “In other years, they’ve not appropriated for a full year, and they’ve always come back for [supplemental spending bills]. ... We wanted to pass something that was fully reflective of the realities of each department’s need,” he said. “I would say woe betide the department that comes back to us with a supplemental [request] this year.”
The budget does not explicitly include the raises promised to state union workers in a new contract. But personnel costs are provided in lump sums, and each agency is left to figure out how to work in the raises. “What we accounted for was their FY 14 raises, and they way we did that was to give our departments maximum flexibility.” A bill that would appropriate back raises, which Gov. Pat Quinn has said he will now give members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union after earlier freezing them, was not called for a vote in committee today.
Some of the unexpected revenue would be used to immediately pay down nearly $600 million in old human services bills. Harris said many of those payments would be eligible for federal matching funds under Medicaid. Some of the additional revenues were incorporated to the revenue estimate for next fiscal year and will be used to defer cuts to education and corrections. Republicans expressed concerns that the additional revenue projected should not automatically be used to increase spending in the budget. “We were conservative a year ago, and it served us well,” Arlington Heights Republican David Harris said.
Chicago Democratic Rep. Louis Arroyo said that the additional money allowed Democrats to funnel $70 million to the Department of Corrections to prevent the potential closure of more state prisons. “I believe there will be no prisons closing,” Arroyo said in a budget committee hearing this morning. “Corrections is going to be OK.” The House approved a public safety budget sponsored by Arroyo today. Higher education is seeing only a slight drop in funding.
Chicago Democratic Rep. Ken Dunkin said that higher education would avoid the 5 percent cuts the governor called for in his March budget proposal. The extra funds would give "additional breathing room for some of our communities," Dunkin said. The House higher education budget, which was also approved today, calls for the Monetary Award Program, which provides scholarships to low-income students, to be funded at a level slightly less than what Quinn presented in his budget. The program has suffered cuts in recent years.
The House did not approve its K-12 budget, but House Democrats who worked on it say a vote is expected tomorrow. The proposal adds more than $150 million to General State Aid for schools to keep the state's proration at 89 percent of the recommended funding level to schools. The bus transportation budget will be kept at 64 percent of recommended levels for schools. The new budget figures will also keep early childhood education and bilingual education at flat funding, compared to last year's budget.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
House plans human services cuts
By Jamey Dunn
The Illinois House is planning to fund human services in its budget at a lower level than Gov. Pat Quinn proposed in his budget.
“We’re looking at cutting $770 million form the governor’s introduced budget, which are horrendous cuts,” Rep. Greg Harris said this morning before heading into a working group meeting, which is not open to the public, to negotiate the human services portion of the House budget with other members of the House human services budget committee. Quinn called for an increase of about $340 million for the Department of Human Services for next year when compared with the current budget.
Harris said that he hopes pass a bill that would spend more on human services this fiscal year as an effort to soften the blow of next fiscal year’s cuts. Income tax revenues for the current year will exceed previous estimates by $1.3 billion. However, some of that money has been used to pay down a chunk of the state’s overdue bills to schools, vendors, social services providers, local governments and others. “The economy has begun the rebound; not a lot but a little. So we have had money come in that was above our target for FY 13,” Harris said. He said spending some of that money on human services this fiscal year, which ends on June 30, “would certainly make our job less horrible and the cuts less painful on people. I hope that everyone will go along with doing that so that we can minimize the cuts, but we still have to continue to look for ways to live within our means and not overspend our budget every year.”
Harris said he did not know when the human services portion of the House budget would be complete. He said members of both parties serving on the committee, which he chairs, are trying to reach agreements. “We’re all trying to work together, and we want to work in a collegial way.” Whatever the House passes would also have to be approved by the Senate and signed by Quinn.
The Illinois House is planning to fund human services in its budget at a lower level than Gov. Pat Quinn proposed in his budget.
“We’re looking at cutting $770 million form the governor’s introduced budget, which are horrendous cuts,” Rep. Greg Harris said this morning before heading into a working group meeting, which is not open to the public, to negotiate the human services portion of the House budget with other members of the House human services budget committee. Quinn called for an increase of about $340 million for the Department of Human Services for next year when compared with the current budget.
Harris said that he hopes pass a bill that would spend more on human services this fiscal year as an effort to soften the blow of next fiscal year’s cuts. Income tax revenues for the current year will exceed previous estimates by $1.3 billion. However, some of that money has been used to pay down a chunk of the state’s overdue bills to schools, vendors, social services providers, local governments and others. “The economy has begun the rebound; not a lot but a little. So we have had money come in that was above our target for FY 13,” Harris said. He said spending some of that money on human services this fiscal year, which ends on June 30, “would certainly make our job less horrible and the cuts less painful on people. I hope that everyone will go along with doing that so that we can minimize the cuts, but we still have to continue to look for ways to live within our means and not overspend our budget every year.”
Harris said he did not know when the human services portion of the House budget would be complete. He said members of both parties serving on the committee, which he chairs, are trying to reach agreements. “We’re all trying to work together, and we want to work in a collegial way.” Whatever the House passes would also have to be approved by the Senate and signed by Quinn.
Friday, April 19, 2013
Legislative roundup
By Jamey Dunn
The Illinois General Assembly had a busy week, as the House worked toward its Friday deadline for final votes on bills that originated from the chamber.
Sex Education
The House approved House Bill 2675, which calls for curriculum standards for sexual education that would emphasize abstinence but also teach students about contraceptives and using condoms to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. The curricula would be for middle schools and high schools, but local districts would not be obligated to use it. Parents could also opt not to allow their kids to attend sex education classes.
Abuse and neglect reporting
Lawmakers voted in favor of HB 948, which is an effort to address problems in the system for reporting abuse and neglect of disabled adults. The Belleville News-Democrat uncovered problems with the system and found that the Office of the Inspector General Department of Human Services did not follow up on reports connected to the deaths of more than 50 people. The office claimed that “the dead are ineligible for services.” (George Pawlaczyk and Beth Hundsdorfer, the reporters who uncovered the department’s practices penned an overview of their findings for the October 2012 Illinois Issues.) Under HB 948, the Department of Aging will create a system and standards for responding to allegations of abuse and neglect. The legislation creates a multi-disciplinary advisory panel that would assist with response.
Workplace violence
The House voted in favor of HB 2590, which allows employers to obtain orders of protection against employees who commit an act of violence at work or threaten individuals in the workplace. The order would bar the person from returning to the workplace.
Child Support
Under HB2843, which the House approved, parents who get lucky at Illinois casinos or racetracks and owe child support could see their debt deducted from their winnings. The racetrack or casino would be required to hold out the child support owed and send the money to the Department of Healthcare and Family Services. In exchange, the casino or racetrack would be paid a fee of the lesser of either 4 percent of the winnings or $150.
Guns and pensions
The House voted down HB 1296, which would have barred the state’s pension systems from investing in firearm manufactures.
Drones
The Senate approved Senate Bill 1587, which would regulate the use of unmanned aerial drones in the state. The bill would require law enforcement agencies to obtain warrants to use drones over private property and would ban them from using drones equipped with weapons. The legislation contains exemptions for emergency situations. Drones could also be used to photograph traffic accidents and crime scenes.
Concealed carry
The House rejected two bills this week to regulate concealed carrying of firearms. Supporters of concealed carry in Illinois are pushing for a “shall issue” licensing system that would require the state to give permits to applicants who meet the requirements set out in the law. But earlier this week the U.S. Supreme Court opted not to hear a challenge to New York’s “may issue” law. That statute allows law enforcement officials to deny applicants who may be qualified on paper for a license if they think the applicants present a danger. A “may issue” amendment came before the House on Wednesday, and members voted 31 to 76 against adopting it to a bill. On Thursday, HB 997, a more permissive “shall issue” bill, fell seven votes short of passage. Those who are working on concealed carry in the Senate expect to present legislation in the coming weeks. A federal court overturned the state’s ban on carrying firearms in public and gave lawmakers until June to pass legislation regulating carry.
The House is not scheduled for session next week. The Senate is scheduled for session from Tuesday through Thursday, which is the deadline for passing bills that originate from that chamber. Senate President John Cullerton warned there will probably be long hours next week. While lawmakers are trying to get their legislation out of each chamber before the voting deadlines, there are always ways around those deadlines for more controversial bills, such as employee pension changes, concealed carry and same sex marriage. As the adage goes, no legislation under the dome is every truly “dead.”
The Illinois General Assembly had a busy week, as the House worked toward its Friday deadline for final votes on bills that originated from the chamber.
Sex Education
The House approved House Bill 2675, which calls for curriculum standards for sexual education that would emphasize abstinence but also teach students about contraceptives and using condoms to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. The curricula would be for middle schools and high schools, but local districts would not be obligated to use it. Parents could also opt not to allow their kids to attend sex education classes.
Abuse and neglect reporting
Lawmakers voted in favor of HB 948, which is an effort to address problems in the system for reporting abuse and neglect of disabled adults. The Belleville News-Democrat uncovered problems with the system and found that the Office of the Inspector General Department of Human Services did not follow up on reports connected to the deaths of more than 50 people. The office claimed that “the dead are ineligible for services.” (George Pawlaczyk and Beth Hundsdorfer, the reporters who uncovered the department’s practices penned an overview of their findings for the October 2012 Illinois Issues.) Under HB 948, the Department of Aging will create a system and standards for responding to allegations of abuse and neglect. The legislation creates a multi-disciplinary advisory panel that would assist with response.
Workplace violence
The House voted in favor of HB 2590, which allows employers to obtain orders of protection against employees who commit an act of violence at work or threaten individuals in the workplace. The order would bar the person from returning to the workplace.
Child Support
Under HB2843, which the House approved, parents who get lucky at Illinois casinos or racetracks and owe child support could see their debt deducted from their winnings. The racetrack or casino would be required to hold out the child support owed and send the money to the Department of Healthcare and Family Services. In exchange, the casino or racetrack would be paid a fee of the lesser of either 4 percent of the winnings or $150.
Guns and pensions
The House voted down HB 1296, which would have barred the state’s pension systems from investing in firearm manufactures.
Drones
The Senate approved Senate Bill 1587, which would regulate the use of unmanned aerial drones in the state. The bill would require law enforcement agencies to obtain warrants to use drones over private property and would ban them from using drones equipped with weapons. The legislation contains exemptions for emergency situations. Drones could also be used to photograph traffic accidents and crime scenes.
Concealed carry
The House rejected two bills this week to regulate concealed carrying of firearms. Supporters of concealed carry in Illinois are pushing for a “shall issue” licensing system that would require the state to give permits to applicants who meet the requirements set out in the law. But earlier this week the U.S. Supreme Court opted not to hear a challenge to New York’s “may issue” law. That statute allows law enforcement officials to deny applicants who may be qualified on paper for a license if they think the applicants present a danger. A “may issue” amendment came before the House on Wednesday, and members voted 31 to 76 against adopting it to a bill. On Thursday, HB 997, a more permissive “shall issue” bill, fell seven votes short of passage. Those who are working on concealed carry in the Senate expect to present legislation in the coming weeks. A federal court overturned the state’s ban on carrying firearms in public and gave lawmakers until June to pass legislation regulating carry.
The House is not scheduled for session next week. The Senate is scheduled for session from Tuesday through Thursday, which is the deadline for passing bills that originate from that chamber. Senate President John Cullerton warned there will probably be long hours next week. While lawmakers are trying to get their legislation out of each chamber before the voting deadlines, there are always ways around those deadlines for more controversial bills, such as employee pension changes, concealed carry and same sex marriage. As the adage goes, no legislation under the dome is every truly “dead.”
Thursday, April 11, 2013
DHS bogged down by big caseloads
By Jamey Dunn
The Illinois Department of Human Services is struggling to provide services as some workers face caseloads of more than a thousand people.
Michelle Saddler, the agency's director, said that the department is understaffed. “Many of you have probably heard DHS is behind or DHS has a backlog,” she told a House human services budget committee today. “We at DHS overall need more realistic staffing.” The department is asking for $3.6 billion for fiscal year 2014, the same amount proposed under Gov. Pat Quinn’s budget. DHS is expected to spend more than $3.2 billion this fiscal year. The department was cut by almost $150 million under the current fiscal year’s budget.
Linda Saterfield, director of the division of family and community services at DHS, said some of her caseworkers have caseloads as big as 2,600. “If you calculate that out, that leaves that worker less than 45 minutes over the course of a year to serve that family.” The average caseload in the division, which administers such core safety net programs as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program, averages more than 900 cases per worker. That compares with the year 2000, when the average was just under 250 cases per worker. Saterfield said that one in four residents are served through one of the division’s programs. “Our caseload has grown dramatically, but our staffing levels have reduced so much that we are unable to adequately meet the needs for services,” she said.
Kevin Casey, director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities at DHS, said there are about 11,000 people with developmental disabilities waiting for services in Illinois. He said the wait time can be up to four years. “It really is a struggle to understand how they get from one day to another at times,” Casey told the committee. He said the department does have a plan to reduce the number of people on the wait list over the next few years. Casey told committee members that he would later calculate what it would cost to address the wait list immediately. “It’s a choker of a number. It would take a good deal of money to serve everyone on that waiting list.”
Theodora Binion, acting director of the Division of Mental Health at DHS, said that more than 80 percent of people in need of mental health services are not receiving them. “Eighty percent of the people who need mental health services aren’t getting them? Something fundamentally is wrong with that system,” said Rep. David Leitch, who serves on the committee. Leitch said that he thinks lawmakers should prioritize mental health funding over other requests the department might have. “To overlook this, to me, is quite a crisis. I think we should as a committee take a very hard look [at it] before we add a lot of new employees at DHS and do some of the other things.” Binion said steps are being taken to serve more people through managed care programs. “I think that there are plans afoot to increase the capacity.” (For more on the lack of funding for mental health care in the state, see Illinois Issues March 2013.
One factor in the department’s struggle to administer services to people in need is increased demand. “One in three people in Illinois are living in poverty or teetering on the edge of poverty,” said Samantha Tuttle, the director of policy for the Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights. The alliance is an anti-poverty organization that tracks statistics across the state. Tuttle said the state is not doing enough to combat poverty growth. “Illinois has taken steps backwards in addressing poverty, and it shows.” She said recent cuts in virtually every area of human services have given the poor few places to turn. “Taken together, they’re really a dismantling of our safety net system that helps mitigate the experiences of people living in poverty and moves people out of poverty.”
While the DHS is asking for a funding increase, in part to pay for additional staffing, Saddler said she is aware that lawmakers are facing big budget issues. “We understand that we are all under the pressure of the large pension crisis and that that must be dealt with.” Saddler said the department is doing its best during a difficult time to care for Illinoisans. “If DHS cannot be run on a culture of caring, then who can? Every time that we find that we’ve done something that’s not caring, we pick ourselves up and try again.”
The Illinois Department of Human Services is struggling to provide services as some workers face caseloads of more than a thousand people.
Michelle Saddler, the agency's director, said that the department is understaffed. “Many of you have probably heard DHS is behind or DHS has a backlog,” she told a House human services budget committee today. “We at DHS overall need more realistic staffing.” The department is asking for $3.6 billion for fiscal year 2014, the same amount proposed under Gov. Pat Quinn’s budget. DHS is expected to spend more than $3.2 billion this fiscal year. The department was cut by almost $150 million under the current fiscal year’s budget.
Linda Saterfield, director of the division of family and community services at DHS, said some of her caseworkers have caseloads as big as 2,600. “If you calculate that out, that leaves that worker less than 45 minutes over the course of a year to serve that family.” The average caseload in the division, which administers such core safety net programs as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program, averages more than 900 cases per worker. That compares with the year 2000, when the average was just under 250 cases per worker. Saterfield said that one in four residents are served through one of the division’s programs. “Our caseload has grown dramatically, but our staffing levels have reduced so much that we are unable to adequately meet the needs for services,” she said.
Kevin Casey, director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities at DHS, said there are about 11,000 people with developmental disabilities waiting for services in Illinois. He said the wait time can be up to four years. “It really is a struggle to understand how they get from one day to another at times,” Casey told the committee. He said the department does have a plan to reduce the number of people on the wait list over the next few years. Casey told committee members that he would later calculate what it would cost to address the wait list immediately. “It’s a choker of a number. It would take a good deal of money to serve everyone on that waiting list.”
Theodora Binion, acting director of the Division of Mental Health at DHS, said that more than 80 percent of people in need of mental health services are not receiving them. “Eighty percent of the people who need mental health services aren’t getting them? Something fundamentally is wrong with that system,” said Rep. David Leitch, who serves on the committee. Leitch said that he thinks lawmakers should prioritize mental health funding over other requests the department might have. “To overlook this, to me, is quite a crisis. I think we should as a committee take a very hard look [at it] before we add a lot of new employees at DHS and do some of the other things.” Binion said steps are being taken to serve more people through managed care programs. “I think that there are plans afoot to increase the capacity.” (For more on the lack of funding for mental health care in the state, see Illinois Issues March 2013.
One factor in the department’s struggle to administer services to people in need is increased demand. “One in three people in Illinois are living in poverty or teetering on the edge of poverty,” said Samantha Tuttle, the director of policy for the Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights. The alliance is an anti-poverty organization that tracks statistics across the state. Tuttle said the state is not doing enough to combat poverty growth. “Illinois has taken steps backwards in addressing poverty, and it shows.” She said recent cuts in virtually every area of human services have given the poor few places to turn. “Taken together, they’re really a dismantling of our safety net system that helps mitigate the experiences of people living in poverty and moves people out of poverty.”
While the DHS is asking for a funding increase, in part to pay for additional staffing, Saddler said she is aware that lawmakers are facing big budget issues. “We understand that we are all under the pressure of the large pension crisis and that that must be dealt with.” Saddler said the department is doing its best during a difficult time to care for Illinoisans. “If DHS cannot be run on a culture of caring, then who can? Every time that we find that we’ve done something that’s not caring, we pick ourselves up and try again.”
Home health care providers lobby for funding to cover shortfall
By Meredith Colias
Social service advocates say agencies providing in-home care for seniors could be at risk if additional state money is not set aside to pay them.
The Illinois Department of Aging notified service providers in a letter March 7 that it would soon run out of money to fund the Community Care Program for the current fiscal year, which ends on June 30. Providers say that $173 million is needed to properly fund service through the end of Fiscal Year 2013. Kimberly Parker, the Department of Aging's spokeswoman, said in an email it was “common knowledge” the legislature did not give the agency enough money to continue to pay providers through the entire fiscal year and that administrators are hopeful additional money could be found. She said that so far, providers have continued to administer services, but without more funding, payment would likely be delayed until the start of next fiscal year.
The program serves mainly lower-income seniors who apply for assistance through the state for home-based long-term care assistance, with everyday needs ranging from preparing meals and running errands to dressing and bathing, according to the agency's website. The program helps to care for an estimated 80,000 senior citizens in the state. Aside from at-home providers, it also helps to pay for background checks for at-home caregivers, adult day centers that watch elderly clients during the day and a program designed to preventing elderly spouses from being burdened by their spouses in-home care and falling into poverty. To qualify, Illinois residents must be at least 60 years old, the state must determine that they need long-term care and they must have less than $17,500 in assets aside from their home, car and furniture.
Helping senior citizens remain in their homes is preferable for the state from a financial standpoint, since the Department of Aging estimates the costs would be as much as four times higher to pay for an individual placed in round-the-clock care in a nursing home. The Department of Aging estimates 96 percent of the money it receives from the General Revenue Fund goes to the program. The department says the program was underfunded last fiscal year, as well. Part of the reason why the program is facing a shortfall is because it had to use some of the money it received this year to cover last year's costs.
Jacquie Algee, executive director of relations for Service Employees International Union health care, said smaller providers that primarily rely on the state for their operations are most at-risk if the additional funding is not found. “It’s been a problem because it happens every year,” she said. The Illinois Association of Community Care Program Homecare Providers estimates that one-third of its members depend heavily on funding from the Department of Aging and would not be able to continue operations for more than 30 days without it.
Abdon Pallasch, a spokesman for Gov. Pat Quinn, said the governor supports restoring the funds to the department, although Pallasch was unsure where money would be diverted from in the current budget to continue funding. “It’s up to the legislature,” he said.
Social service advocates say agencies providing in-home care for seniors could be at risk if additional state money is not set aside to pay them.
The Illinois Department of Aging notified service providers in a letter March 7 that it would soon run out of money to fund the Community Care Program for the current fiscal year, which ends on June 30. Providers say that $173 million is needed to properly fund service through the end of Fiscal Year 2013. Kimberly Parker, the Department of Aging's spokeswoman, said in an email it was “common knowledge” the legislature did not give the agency enough money to continue to pay providers through the entire fiscal year and that administrators are hopeful additional money could be found. She said that so far, providers have continued to administer services, but without more funding, payment would likely be delayed until the start of next fiscal year.
The program serves mainly lower-income seniors who apply for assistance through the state for home-based long-term care assistance, with everyday needs ranging from preparing meals and running errands to dressing and bathing, according to the agency's website. The program helps to care for an estimated 80,000 senior citizens in the state. Aside from at-home providers, it also helps to pay for background checks for at-home caregivers, adult day centers that watch elderly clients during the day and a program designed to preventing elderly spouses from being burdened by their spouses in-home care and falling into poverty. To qualify, Illinois residents must be at least 60 years old, the state must determine that they need long-term care and they must have less than $17,500 in assets aside from their home, car and furniture.
Helping senior citizens remain in their homes is preferable for the state from a financial standpoint, since the Department of Aging estimates the costs would be as much as four times higher to pay for an individual placed in round-the-clock care in a nursing home. The Department of Aging estimates 96 percent of the money it receives from the General Revenue Fund goes to the program. The department says the program was underfunded last fiscal year, as well. Part of the reason why the program is facing a shortfall is because it had to use some of the money it received this year to cover last year's costs.
Jacquie Algee, executive director of relations for Service Employees International Union health care, said smaller providers that primarily rely on the state for their operations are most at-risk if the additional funding is not found. “It’s been a problem because it happens every year,” she said. The Illinois Association of Community Care Program Homecare Providers estimates that one-third of its members depend heavily on funding from the Department of Aging and would not be able to continue operations for more than 30 days without it.
Abdon Pallasch, a spokesman for Gov. Pat Quinn, said the governor supports restoring the funds to the department, although Pallasch was unsure where money would be diverted from in the current budget to continue funding. “It’s up to the legislature,” he said.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Quinn adviser sees "serious problems" with how DHS handled abuse and neglect allegations
By Jamey Dunn
A House panel took members of Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration to task today over recent reports that the Illinois Department of Human Services did not follow up on allegations of abuse and neglect after the deaths of several developmentally disabled adults.
The Belleville News-Democrat reported in June that the DHS inspector general, who is tasked with looking into reports of neglect, was not pursuing complaints after the alleged victims had died. The agency reportedly deemed those who had died “ineligible for service.” The paper found 53 deaths since 2003 that the department did not investigate or list in its annual report. In most cases, the individuals were brought into the hospital near death, and health care professionals raised the possibility of potential abuse or neglect, but the patient died before an investigation began.
“We’re here today for a particularly sad reason because our state failed to detect abuse and neglect of adults with disabilities. We failed to adequately investigate complaints and failed to protect those who were abused and failed to help bring their abusers to justice,” said Rep. Greg Harris, chair of the House Human Services Committee. “Fifty-three deaths occurred, and there were none, no, absolutely zero felony convictions for that abuse and neglect. ... These men and women passed away and suffered in very horrible ways.” Harris described some of the conditions the disabled adults had faced as “living in filth” and “covered in bedsores.” He said that some had “become emaciated skeletons.” Some “might have been saved if the system had performed batter or even had responded at all to their appalling circumstances instead of parsing legal language,” Harris said.
Michael Gelder, Quinn’s senior adviser on health policy, agreed that there were “serious problems” and “deficiencies” with the way the inspector general’s office handled the cases. “We can’t undo what’s been done, but we can do better,” he told the committee at the Chicago hearing. “The gaps and mistakes in our system are deplorable, and the governor responded as quickly as he could.” He added, “I think that there’s no question that certain job responsibilities were not fulfilled.”
Since the report, Quinn has restructured the inspector general’s office and issued an executive order meant to address the problems. Former inspector general William Davis' resignation becomes effective on Aug. 1. Quinn named Daniel Dyslin as acting inspector general for DHS. Dyslin previously served as senior deputy general council at the department. Quinn also appointed Michael McCotter, who has a background in law enforcement, as a special investigator for the office. McCotter is tasked with looking into the cases that the department failed to investigate previously.
DHS Secretary Michelle Saddler said that the inspector general’s office refers such cases to local law enforcement authority. However, she said the office lacked the proper documentation to prove that all of the cases in questions had been referred. “When a person passes away before we can complete or even initiate an investigation, we appropriately refer these results to local law enforcement agencies,” she told the committee. “But as the days progressed, we found that we had inadequately documented our referrals to law enforcement authorities, and in fact, there was no evidence in many cases of our having made those referrals.” She added that the department made a “very poor choice of words” when it declared the deceased “ineligible for services” in its paperwork. She said the decision “raised concerns about our commitment to adults with disabilities.”
The executive order requires the department to refer suspect cases of neglect or abuse when the alleged victim dies to local law enforcement, to document the referral and to follow up with law enforcement to see what action was taken. “The executive order [and] the investigative team will allow us not only to look back and find out exactly what went wrong but also begin that conversation of how we can make this a better system with the resources we have.”
Rep. Mary Flowers said DHS bears the responsibility for abuse cases slipping through the cracks. “The law is the law, and your agency failed to protect the people,” she said. “It is not about the police. It is about your agency failing to do what it’s supposed to do." Flowers, a Democrat from Chicago, argued that low staffing numbers set the office up for a fall. “This program was doomed for failure from the very beginning,” she said.
Saddler said that the DHS inspector general’s office only has five investigators and one supervisor who handle reports of potential abuse or neglect. However, she said the department is working to find solutions without adding staff. “The reality that all of us are dealing with at each of our levels is that there are only a certain number of resources to go around. There were a tremendous number of unspeakably difficult decisions that were made at every single level of the budget process.”
Rep. Sandy Cole, a Republican from Grayslake, said that budget cuts are no excuse for the department’s shortfalls. “I’m kind of amazed at how we are equating incompetence with the fact that the state has a budget crisis. I found that [to be] such a scapegoat.”
Both Saddler and Gelder agreed that streamlining the process for reporting abuse — regardless if the victim is developmentally disabled, a child or elderly — might help make the system function more smoothly. They noted that many of the calls that come into the DHS hot line for reporting neglect or abuse of the developmentally disabled are not for cases covered by the department. They are instead cases that involve children or the elderly, or they are reports of suspected fraud in programs, such as Medicaid. “If we seriously consider combining these hot lines, we would be doing the public a great service so there wouldn’t be a wrong number,” Gelder said. According to Saddler, the DHS hot line received 1,438 calls in Fiscal Year 2011.
Ann Spillane, chief of staff for Attorney General Lisa Madigan, suggested setting up training programs specific to investigating abuse and neglect allegations for local law enforcement units. “We want to make sure that local law enforcement feel like they’re supported in this effort.” She said local police should also be connected to experts in their area for assistance.
Lawmakers argued that the intent of the law was clear, and they felt that the inspector general disregarded that intent, but they also said that it may be time to rewrite the statute in a way that leaves no room for confusion and considers the needs of the developmentally disabled and those who would utilize the system to report neglect and abuse cases. While some proposed sweeping changes, such as the merger of functions across agencies, others suggested smaller ideas, such as putting the abuse hot line number on the homepage of the DHS website. “We really need to look at the consumer as we design these systems,” Harris said.
A House panel took members of Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration to task today over recent reports that the Illinois Department of Human Services did not follow up on allegations of abuse and neglect after the deaths of several developmentally disabled adults.
The Belleville News-Democrat reported in June that the DHS inspector general, who is tasked with looking into reports of neglect, was not pursuing complaints after the alleged victims had died. The agency reportedly deemed those who had died “ineligible for service.” The paper found 53 deaths since 2003 that the department did not investigate or list in its annual report. In most cases, the individuals were brought into the hospital near death, and health care professionals raised the possibility of potential abuse or neglect, but the patient died before an investigation began.
“We’re here today for a particularly sad reason because our state failed to detect abuse and neglect of adults with disabilities. We failed to adequately investigate complaints and failed to protect those who were abused and failed to help bring their abusers to justice,” said Rep. Greg Harris, chair of the House Human Services Committee. “Fifty-three deaths occurred, and there were none, no, absolutely zero felony convictions for that abuse and neglect. ... These men and women passed away and suffered in very horrible ways.” Harris described some of the conditions the disabled adults had faced as “living in filth” and “covered in bedsores.” He said that some had “become emaciated skeletons.” Some “might have been saved if the system had performed batter or even had responded at all to their appalling circumstances instead of parsing legal language,” Harris said.
Michael Gelder, Quinn’s senior adviser on health policy, agreed that there were “serious problems” and “deficiencies” with the way the inspector general’s office handled the cases. “We can’t undo what’s been done, but we can do better,” he told the committee at the Chicago hearing. “The gaps and mistakes in our system are deplorable, and the governor responded as quickly as he could.” He added, “I think that there’s no question that certain job responsibilities were not fulfilled.”
Since the report, Quinn has restructured the inspector general’s office and issued an executive order meant to address the problems. Former inspector general William Davis' resignation becomes effective on Aug. 1. Quinn named Daniel Dyslin as acting inspector general for DHS. Dyslin previously served as senior deputy general council at the department. Quinn also appointed Michael McCotter, who has a background in law enforcement, as a special investigator for the office. McCotter is tasked with looking into the cases that the department failed to investigate previously.
DHS Secretary Michelle Saddler said that the inspector general’s office refers such cases to local law enforcement authority. However, she said the office lacked the proper documentation to prove that all of the cases in questions had been referred. “When a person passes away before we can complete or even initiate an investigation, we appropriately refer these results to local law enforcement agencies,” she told the committee. “But as the days progressed, we found that we had inadequately documented our referrals to law enforcement authorities, and in fact, there was no evidence in many cases of our having made those referrals.” She added that the department made a “very poor choice of words” when it declared the deceased “ineligible for services” in its paperwork. She said the decision “raised concerns about our commitment to adults with disabilities.”
The executive order requires the department to refer suspect cases of neglect or abuse when the alleged victim dies to local law enforcement, to document the referral and to follow up with law enforcement to see what action was taken. “The executive order [and] the investigative team will allow us not only to look back and find out exactly what went wrong but also begin that conversation of how we can make this a better system with the resources we have.”
Rep. Mary Flowers said DHS bears the responsibility for abuse cases slipping through the cracks. “The law is the law, and your agency failed to protect the people,” she said. “It is not about the police. It is about your agency failing to do what it’s supposed to do." Flowers, a Democrat from Chicago, argued that low staffing numbers set the office up for a fall. “This program was doomed for failure from the very beginning,” she said.
Saddler said that the DHS inspector general’s office only has five investigators and one supervisor who handle reports of potential abuse or neglect. However, she said the department is working to find solutions without adding staff. “The reality that all of us are dealing with at each of our levels is that there are only a certain number of resources to go around. There were a tremendous number of unspeakably difficult decisions that were made at every single level of the budget process.”
Rep. Sandy Cole, a Republican from Grayslake, said that budget cuts are no excuse for the department’s shortfalls. “I’m kind of amazed at how we are equating incompetence with the fact that the state has a budget crisis. I found that [to be] such a scapegoat.”
Both Saddler and Gelder agreed that streamlining the process for reporting abuse — regardless if the victim is developmentally disabled, a child or elderly — might help make the system function more smoothly. They noted that many of the calls that come into the DHS hot line for reporting neglect or abuse of the developmentally disabled are not for cases covered by the department. They are instead cases that involve children or the elderly, or they are reports of suspected fraud in programs, such as Medicaid. “If we seriously consider combining these hot lines, we would be doing the public a great service so there wouldn’t be a wrong number,” Gelder said. According to Saddler, the DHS hot line received 1,438 calls in Fiscal Year 2011.
Ann Spillane, chief of staff for Attorney General Lisa Madigan, suggested setting up training programs specific to investigating abuse and neglect allegations for local law enforcement units. “We want to make sure that local law enforcement feel like they’re supported in this effort.” She said local police should also be connected to experts in their area for assistance.
Lawmakers argued that the intent of the law was clear, and they felt that the inspector general disregarded that intent, but they also said that it may be time to rewrite the statute in a way that leaves no room for confusion and considers the needs of the developmentally disabled and those who would utilize the system to report neglect and abuse cases. While some proposed sweeping changes, such as the merger of functions across agencies, others suggested smaller ideas, such as putting the abuse hot line number on the homepage of the DHS website. “We really need to look at the consumer as we design these systems,” Harris said.
Tuesday, May 08, 2012
TANF recipients may be cut off from benefits
By Ashley Griffin
As lawmakers look to cut billions from the state’s Medicaid liability, other programs geared at helping Illinoisans in poverty may also see substantial reductions.
Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposed budget would cap lifetime eligibility for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Family Program, formerly known as welfare, at three years. TANF provides cash assistance to pregnant women or families with children, and lifetime benefits are currently capped at five years. Quinn has also proposed reductions to job training and placement programs offered through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. However, Quinn’s plan does not call for cuts to food stamps, which are paid for with federal funds.
In recent years, income assistance programs have all seen increases, and the Department of Human Services says it cannot afford to keep pace. According to Michelle Saddler, secretary of the Illinois Department of Human Services, the proposed cuts are a result of the increased demands in services — a result of the recession that hit Illinois hard. The department has seen a spike in demands on its income assistance programs and programs that assist persons with developmental disabilities and mental disabilities in the wake of the recession. “Some of those increased cost come from increased demand. As we all know, there has been an economic downturn. During an economic downturn more and more people need services,” Saddler said. According to Linda Satterfield, director of the Division of Family and Community Services at DHS, caseloads at local offices have grown 38 percent in the last five years. “Last year, the TANF caseload was 38,500. Our TANF caseload has grown to 46,000. We have the 12th largest TANF caseload in the nation, and our processing time ranks 51st,” said Satterfield.
Increased demand for the TANF program is squeezing out other programs that rely on the same funds. Quinn’s administration has notified child care providers in the state that they may see payments delayed at least until the next fiscal year starts in July because they are paid out of the same fund as TANF benefits. Under federal welfare reform passed in the '90s, states can spend TANF dollars on programs besides cash assistance, such as child care and job training. Quinn is seeking a supplemental appropriation from lawmakers to try to keep TANF assistance and child care subsidies afloat. “We will not be able to get through this fiscal year without supplemental [funds],” Satterfield said. Quinn is asking for an additional $73.6 million.
Advocates say that families who are kicked off TANF under the proposed eligibility change would likely have nowhere else to turn. “I mean, that’s more of a hardship because you’ve got families that this is the last safety net, so if you remove this, then they have no income whatsoever,” said Dan Lesser, director of economic justice at the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law in Chicago, who also did not find the increase in TANF cases surprising. “The reason why the TANF caseload is growing is because of the economy. These are all programs that should grow when there is a recession; they are there to replace income [that] people don’t have because of the recession.”
According to Lesser, shifting TANF eligibility from five years to three years would instantly affect 3,000 Illinois families and more families every month after. “There is no policy justification for doing this; they haven’t even offered policy justification. This is the worst possible time, with the state of the economy [and] the long period of times people are going between jobs, to shorten the time limit,” Lesser said.
As lawmakers look to cut billions from the state’s Medicaid liability, other programs geared at helping Illinoisans in poverty may also see substantial reductions.
Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposed budget would cap lifetime eligibility for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Family Program, formerly known as welfare, at three years. TANF provides cash assistance to pregnant women or families with children, and lifetime benefits are currently capped at five years. Quinn has also proposed reductions to job training and placement programs offered through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. However, Quinn’s plan does not call for cuts to food stamps, which are paid for with federal funds.
In recent years, income assistance programs have all seen increases, and the Department of Human Services says it cannot afford to keep pace. According to Michelle Saddler, secretary of the Illinois Department of Human Services, the proposed cuts are a result of the increased demands in services — a result of the recession that hit Illinois hard. The department has seen a spike in demands on its income assistance programs and programs that assist persons with developmental disabilities and mental disabilities in the wake of the recession. “Some of those increased cost come from increased demand. As we all know, there has been an economic downturn. During an economic downturn more and more people need services,” Saddler said. According to Linda Satterfield, director of the Division of Family and Community Services at DHS, caseloads at local offices have grown 38 percent in the last five years. “Last year, the TANF caseload was 38,500. Our TANF caseload has grown to 46,000. We have the 12th largest TANF caseload in the nation, and our processing time ranks 51st,” said Satterfield.
Increased demand for the TANF program is squeezing out other programs that rely on the same funds. Quinn’s administration has notified child care providers in the state that they may see payments delayed at least until the next fiscal year starts in July because they are paid out of the same fund as TANF benefits. Under federal welfare reform passed in the '90s, states can spend TANF dollars on programs besides cash assistance, such as child care and job training. Quinn is seeking a supplemental appropriation from lawmakers to try to keep TANF assistance and child care subsidies afloat. “We will not be able to get through this fiscal year without supplemental [funds],” Satterfield said. Quinn is asking for an additional $73.6 million.
Advocates say that families who are kicked off TANF under the proposed eligibility change would likely have nowhere else to turn. “I mean, that’s more of a hardship because you’ve got families that this is the last safety net, so if you remove this, then they have no income whatsoever,” said Dan Lesser, director of economic justice at the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law in Chicago, who also did not find the increase in TANF cases surprising. “The reason why the TANF caseload is growing is because of the economy. These are all programs that should grow when there is a recession; they are there to replace income [that] people don’t have because of the recession.”
According to Lesser, shifting TANF eligibility from five years to three years would instantly affect 3,000 Illinois families and more families every month after. “There is no policy justification for doing this; they haven’t even offered policy justification. This is the worst possible time, with the state of the economy [and] the long period of times people are going between jobs, to shorten the time limit,” Lesser said.
Monday, April 16, 2012
As autism grows, funding for programs shrinks
By Ashley Griffin
The number of autism cases is on the rise, but funding for autism-related programs in the state has been dropping and could take another hit under the budget for next fiscal year.
A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that nationally, one in 88 children under 8 years old have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, which can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges. The rate was determined with 2008 data, and the new figure represents an increase from one in 110 children living with autism in 2006. The report states: “Comparison of 2008 findings with those for earlier surveillance years indicated an increase in estimated ASD [autism spectrum disorder] prevalence of 23 percent when the 2008 data were compared with the data for 2006, and an estimated increase of 78 percent when the 2008 data were compared with the data for 2002.”
Experts believe that improved diagnostic methods and increased awareness of the disease has contributed to the increase. “Some of the increase is due to the way children are identified, diagnosed and served in their local communities, although exactly how much is due to these factors in unknown,” the report from the CDC said.
Minority children saw the largest increases. Between 2002 and 2008, The number of African-American children diagnosed with autism increased by 91 percent, and the number of Hispanic children diagnosed increased by 110 percent. Caucasian children saw a 70 percent increase over the same time frame. “We suspect that some of this increase is due to greater awareness and better identification among these [minority] groups. However, this finding explains only part of the increase over time, as more children are being identified in all groups,” the study from the CDC said.
According to The Autism Program of Illinois, 30,000 children between the ages of 5 and 19 are living with autism in the state. Mark Schmidt, a spokesman for the group, says the number of cases could possibly be as high as 39,000 because without proper screening, many children do not get the treatment they need. Schmidt said his organization is seeing the CDC’s findings play out in the state as more families are seeking services for children with autism. “We are definitely experiencing what the CDC is reporting.”
Although an autism diagnoses does not include tangible medical evidence such as blood test, it requires an observational test performed by a doctor who studies a child’s interaction. This can make it more difficult to diagnose than some other conditions. The CDC recommends if a parent notices some behavioral problems by the child’s first birthday, a screening maybe necessary. Autism is almost five times more likely in boys than in girls.
As the number of cases have increased both nationwide and in Illinois, funding for some autism programs in the state have been on the chopping block for several years in a row. Schmidt says funding has decreased about 14 percent over the last four years. “We are going to see a tremendous decrease in the amount of services.”
In fiscal year 2012, The Autism Program of Illinois received $4.6 million. Under Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposed budget for FY2012, the group would get $4.1 million. However, lawmakers are on course to pass even bigger cuts than Quinn called for, so the final funding level could be less. Schmidt said that the cuts would lead to less services being offered to families who have children with from autism. He said the cuts would also make it harder to keep staff numbers up and make sure that employees are properly trained. The cuts could also lead to fewer hours of direct treatment for patients with autism. According to Schmidt, the cuts would result in 1,800 children not receiving some of the services offered by TAP, such as speech therapy, group support and early intervention for families.
However, the Illinois Department of Human Services says the cuts are necessary to help the state regain control of its finances. “These are serious fiscal times, and tough cuts were made across all agencies. In order to move Illinois forward, we must reform and stabilize its Medicaid and pension systems ASAP. If we don’t tackle the task this spring, budget cuts will be much deeper and even more painful for programs and providers alike in FY 13,” Januari Smith, a spokeswoman for the Department of Human Services, said in a written statement.
The number of autism cases is on the rise, but funding for autism-related programs in the state has been dropping and could take another hit under the budget for next fiscal year.
A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that nationally, one in 88 children under 8 years old have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, which can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges. The rate was determined with 2008 data, and the new figure represents an increase from one in 110 children living with autism in 2006. The report states: “Comparison of 2008 findings with those for earlier surveillance years indicated an increase in estimated ASD [autism spectrum disorder] prevalence of 23 percent when the 2008 data were compared with the data for 2006, and an estimated increase of 78 percent when the 2008 data were compared with the data for 2002.”
Experts believe that improved diagnostic methods and increased awareness of the disease has contributed to the increase. “Some of the increase is due to the way children are identified, diagnosed and served in their local communities, although exactly how much is due to these factors in unknown,” the report from the CDC said.
Minority children saw the largest increases. Between 2002 and 2008, The number of African-American children diagnosed with autism increased by 91 percent, and the number of Hispanic children diagnosed increased by 110 percent. Caucasian children saw a 70 percent increase over the same time frame. “We suspect that some of this increase is due to greater awareness and better identification among these [minority] groups. However, this finding explains only part of the increase over time, as more children are being identified in all groups,” the study from the CDC said.
According to The Autism Program of Illinois, 30,000 children between the ages of 5 and 19 are living with autism in the state. Mark Schmidt, a spokesman for the group, says the number of cases could possibly be as high as 39,000 because without proper screening, many children do not get the treatment they need. Schmidt said his organization is seeing the CDC’s findings play out in the state as more families are seeking services for children with autism. “We are definitely experiencing what the CDC is reporting.”
Although an autism diagnoses does not include tangible medical evidence such as blood test, it requires an observational test performed by a doctor who studies a child’s interaction. This can make it more difficult to diagnose than some other conditions. The CDC recommends if a parent notices some behavioral problems by the child’s first birthday, a screening maybe necessary. Autism is almost five times more likely in boys than in girls.
As the number of cases have increased both nationwide and in Illinois, funding for some autism programs in the state have been on the chopping block for several years in a row. Schmidt says funding has decreased about 14 percent over the last four years. “We are going to see a tremendous decrease in the amount of services.”
In fiscal year 2012, The Autism Program of Illinois received $4.6 million. Under Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposed budget for FY2012, the group would get $4.1 million. However, lawmakers are on course to pass even bigger cuts than Quinn called for, so the final funding level could be less. Schmidt said that the cuts would lead to less services being offered to families who have children with from autism. He said the cuts would also make it harder to keep staff numbers up and make sure that employees are properly trained. The cuts could also lead to fewer hours of direct treatment for patients with autism. According to Schmidt, the cuts would result in 1,800 children not receiving some of the services offered by TAP, such as speech therapy, group support and early intervention for families.
However, the Illinois Department of Human Services says the cuts are necessary to help the state regain control of its finances. “These are serious fiscal times, and tough cuts were made across all agencies. In order to move Illinois forward, we must reform and stabilize its Medicaid and pension systems ASAP. If we don’t tackle the task this spring, budget cuts will be much deeper and even more painful for programs and providers alike in FY 13,” Januari Smith, a spokeswoman for the Department of Human Services, said in a written statement.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Quinn plans to close Jacksonville and Tinley Park facilities
By Jamey Dunn
Gov. Pat Quinn today announced plans to close the Tinley Park Mental Health Center and the Jacksonville Developmental Center as part of a larger proposal to close several state institutions.
Quinn previously proposed the closure of seven state facilities because he said there was not enough money in the Fiscal Year 2012 budget to keep them open. Lawmakers worked out a budget deal in November to keep the institutions open through the end of FY 2012, but Quinn said he planned to move ahead with closures after the end of the fiscal year.
Under the plan, 600 of the about 2,000 people with developmental disabilities currently in state institutions would be moved into community care settings over the next two and a half years, up to four state centers for the developmentally disabled would be closed and two state mental health centers would also be shuttered.
“My administration is committed to increasing community care options and improving the quality of life for people with developmental disabilities and mental health conditions,” Gov. Pat Quinn said in a prepared statement. “The approach we are taking will allow for the safe transition of care for some of our most vulnerable citizens to community care settings. I want to thank the members of the public, the General Assembly and advocates who worked with my administration to meet this challenge and help our state move forward.”
Under the governor’s proposal, the Tinley Park Mental Health Center would shut down in July, and the Jacksonville Developmental Center would close in October.
The Tinley Park Center primarily serves so-called acute care patients, who typically stay between 24 hours to 21 days. The administration plans to halt admissions at Tinley in time for all patients to complete treatment before the closure, but no date has been chosen yet. “The [Department of Mental Health], however, is actively securing additional beds at community providers and hospitals in the area surrounding Tinley Park [Mental Health Center] to ensure that services in the area are not interrupted,” said a summary of the plan issued by Quinn’s office.
According to the governor’s office, several factors were weighed when considering which facilities to close, including the age of the facility, the amount of deferred maintenance and repairs, the level and quality of care and the economic impact.
But Rep. Jim Watson, a Republican from Jacksonville, said that he thinks administration officials knew what facilities they wanted to close and created the rubric to fit those institutions. “It was pretty obvious that they developed criteria to get the outcome they wanted.” Watson was part of a working group that took up the issue of which facilities should be on the chopping block. “I think that they picked facilities that were largely downstate geographically where he did not fare well and then picked them in mainly Republican districts.”
Watson noted that Tinley Park us in northern Illinois, but he said it made the list because Quinn has been considering closing it for a while. Both of the facilities announced today were also on the list for closure under the governor’s previous plan.
Unions representing the workers and families of residents at the state’s developmental center say Quinn has not included them in talks over closure decisions. Watson said he thinks that Quinn is listening to advocates on just one side of the issue. “As a governor, don’t you have to be responsive to both sides of the issue and the entire state?” he asked. Watson was critical of Quinn for being in Washington, D.C., when the word came down about planned facility closures today. “I think it’s reflective [of his mindset on the issue] that the governor today is in [Washington,] D.C., when he makes an announcement that affects the lives of thousands of Illinoisans.”
Union officials complained earlier this week about working group meetings that were held outside of the public view and said Quinn was moving forward without their input. “Mental health and developmental centers provide essential health care services in communities across Illinois. When these facilities are threatened, what’s at stake is life or death for men and women who need intensive developmental services or treatment in mental health crisis and have nowhere else to go. The closure push appears based on politics and budget considerations, not what’s best for individuals, families and communities. It’s grossly irresponsible to plot to close these facilities behind closed doors,” Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, said in a written statement.
“The governor’s office has not reached out to us at all,” said Rita Burke, president of the Illinois League of Advocates for the Developmentally Disabled, which represents parent organizations from the state facilities. “My concern about these particular people making decisions that are monumental in meaning in scope for families is that I don’t believe that they are intimately knowledgeable about the facilities or about the residents.” She said that the quota-driven nature of the plan could force people into the community against their will or into situations that do not provide an appropriate level of care.
Advocates for delivering care in smaller settings argue that receiving services in one’s home or a home-like setting with fewer residents allows developmentally disabled adults more freedom, flexibility and the ability to be a part of their community through activities, such as holding a job or volunteering. “Community-based care is about quality of life,” Kevin Casey, director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities, said in a prepared statement. “Through this careful, deliberate process, Illinois will improve quality of life for hundreds of people with developmental disabilities, while realizing significant savings through the closure of a costly state facility.” The Department of Human Services said it would conduct thorough assessments, so residents of facilities would be matched with the services they need when they are outside of institutions. The plan is to move 20 residents per month out of institutional care.
Supporters also highlight the potential cost savings that could come from closing facilities and serving those with developmental disabilities and mental health needs in community settings. According to the Department of Human Services, operations at the Jacksonville Developmental Center cost about $29.7 million annually. Under Quinn’s plan, the state would invest about $16.2 million in community care and save about $11.7 million. Tinley Park Mental Health Center has an annual operating cost of about $20.6 million. The state would invest $9.8 million in community mental health programs and save about $8.1 million.
But Watson said that losing the economic stimulus that the facilities provide to the local communities is not worth savings that seem somewhat meager when compared with the overall state budget. “Is this financial or is this philosophical?” he asked.
“If the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity could make an investment of $12 million and get an economic impact of $47 million, they would do it in a heartbeat,” Watson said of the plan to close the facility in Jacksonville.
For more on the state's shift away from institutional care, see the upcoming February issue of Illinois Issues.
Gov. Pat Quinn today announced plans to close the Tinley Park Mental Health Center and the Jacksonville Developmental Center as part of a larger proposal to close several state institutions.
Quinn previously proposed the closure of seven state facilities because he said there was not enough money in the Fiscal Year 2012 budget to keep them open. Lawmakers worked out a budget deal in November to keep the institutions open through the end of FY 2012, but Quinn said he planned to move ahead with closures after the end of the fiscal year.
Under the plan, 600 of the about 2,000 people with developmental disabilities currently in state institutions would be moved into community care settings over the next two and a half years, up to four state centers for the developmentally disabled would be closed and two state mental health centers would also be shuttered.
“My administration is committed to increasing community care options and improving the quality of life for people with developmental disabilities and mental health conditions,” Gov. Pat Quinn said in a prepared statement. “The approach we are taking will allow for the safe transition of care for some of our most vulnerable citizens to community care settings. I want to thank the members of the public, the General Assembly and advocates who worked with my administration to meet this challenge and help our state move forward.”
Under the governor’s proposal, the Tinley Park Mental Health Center would shut down in July, and the Jacksonville Developmental Center would close in October.
The Tinley Park Center primarily serves so-called acute care patients, who typically stay between 24 hours to 21 days. The administration plans to halt admissions at Tinley in time for all patients to complete treatment before the closure, but no date has been chosen yet. “The [Department of Mental Health], however, is actively securing additional beds at community providers and hospitals in the area surrounding Tinley Park [Mental Health Center] to ensure that services in the area are not interrupted,” said a summary of the plan issued by Quinn’s office.
According to the governor’s office, several factors were weighed when considering which facilities to close, including the age of the facility, the amount of deferred maintenance and repairs, the level and quality of care and the economic impact.
But Rep. Jim Watson, a Republican from Jacksonville, said that he thinks administration officials knew what facilities they wanted to close and created the rubric to fit those institutions. “It was pretty obvious that they developed criteria to get the outcome they wanted.” Watson was part of a working group that took up the issue of which facilities should be on the chopping block. “I think that they picked facilities that were largely downstate geographically where he did not fare well and then picked them in mainly Republican districts.”
Watson noted that Tinley Park us in northern Illinois, but he said it made the list because Quinn has been considering closing it for a while. Both of the facilities announced today were also on the list for closure under the governor’s previous plan.
Unions representing the workers and families of residents at the state’s developmental center say Quinn has not included them in talks over closure decisions. Watson said he thinks that Quinn is listening to advocates on just one side of the issue. “As a governor, don’t you have to be responsive to both sides of the issue and the entire state?” he asked. Watson was critical of Quinn for being in Washington, D.C., when the word came down about planned facility closures today. “I think it’s reflective [of his mindset on the issue] that the governor today is in [Washington,] D.C., when he makes an announcement that affects the lives of thousands of Illinoisans.”
Union officials complained earlier this week about working group meetings that were held outside of the public view and said Quinn was moving forward without their input. “Mental health and developmental centers provide essential health care services in communities across Illinois. When these facilities are threatened, what’s at stake is life or death for men and women who need intensive developmental services or treatment in mental health crisis and have nowhere else to go. The closure push appears based on politics and budget considerations, not what’s best for individuals, families and communities. It’s grossly irresponsible to plot to close these facilities behind closed doors,” Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, said in a written statement.
“The governor’s office has not reached out to us at all,” said Rita Burke, president of the Illinois League of Advocates for the Developmentally Disabled, which represents parent organizations from the state facilities. “My concern about these particular people making decisions that are monumental in meaning in scope for families is that I don’t believe that they are intimately knowledgeable about the facilities or about the residents.” She said that the quota-driven nature of the plan could force people into the community against their will or into situations that do not provide an appropriate level of care.
Advocates for delivering care in smaller settings argue that receiving services in one’s home or a home-like setting with fewer residents allows developmentally disabled adults more freedom, flexibility and the ability to be a part of their community through activities, such as holding a job or volunteering. “Community-based care is about quality of life,” Kevin Casey, director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities, said in a prepared statement. “Through this careful, deliberate process, Illinois will improve quality of life for hundreds of people with developmental disabilities, while realizing significant savings through the closure of a costly state facility.” The Department of Human Services said it would conduct thorough assessments, so residents of facilities would be matched with the services they need when they are outside of institutions. The plan is to move 20 residents per month out of institutional care.
Supporters also highlight the potential cost savings that could come from closing facilities and serving those with developmental disabilities and mental health needs in community settings. According to the Department of Human Services, operations at the Jacksonville Developmental Center cost about $29.7 million annually. Under Quinn’s plan, the state would invest about $16.2 million in community care and save about $11.7 million. Tinley Park Mental Health Center has an annual operating cost of about $20.6 million. The state would invest $9.8 million in community mental health programs and save about $8.1 million.
But Watson said that losing the economic stimulus that the facilities provide to the local communities is not worth savings that seem somewhat meager when compared with the overall state budget. “Is this financial or is this philosophical?” he asked.
“If the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity could make an investment of $12 million and get an economic impact of $47 million, they would do it in a heartbeat,” Watson said of the plan to close the facility in Jacksonville.
For more on the state's shift away from institutional care, see the upcoming February issue of Illinois Issues.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Human services spending restored as part of larger budget deal
By Ashley Griffin
As part of legislation that will keep some state institutions open through the current fiscal year, the Illinois General Assembly also approved more spending for some human services programs.
With all eyes on a plan to halt state facility closures and avert 1,900 layoff, the General Assembly was able to quietly restore millions to some human services programs statewide in cash-stricken times.
Teen Parent Services, which helps low-income parents younger than 20 receive their GEDs and offers parent training classes, received $1.4 million under Senate Bill 2412.“Redeploy Illinois,” a program designed to provide services to youth 13 to 18 years old who are in the juvenile system and are at high risk of being committed to the Department of Corrections, received $2.4 million.
Legislators also allocated $1.4 million to the state’s Homeless Prevention program. Sen. Heather Steans, one of the sponsors of the bill, said that if programs to address homelessness did not receive funding now, it would lead to larger problems and costs for the state because more people would end up in emergency rooms, institutionalized and on the streets. “We were making sure it was getting maintained, not cut out completely,” said Steans, a Chicago Democrat. Senate Democrats pushed for more human services spending last summer but lost when the House and Gov. Pat Quinn refused to go along with the plan.
The Homeless Prevention program was designed to help provide rental assistance, utility assistance and supportive services to individuals and families who are at risk of being evicted or entering foreclosure on their homes. For the past five years, the program has provided counseling, job preparation and assistance with rent or security deposits. It is administered by six centers in the Chicago area and more than 75 sites statewide that aim to help families remain in their homes by offering various programs such a one-month rental-assistance program and emergency funds for families.
According to the Department of Human Service’s website, the program served more than 14,000 households in Fiscal Year 2007. The state’s economic downturn has brought a growing demand for social services and left the state climbing to the top of the nation’s largest inventory of foreclosed homes. A May 2011 RealtyTrac report showed the Chicago metropolitan area had 118,776 homes in foreclosure.
“I think there’s a lot of cold people in the street in the winter months, and homeless families have it the worst. … At the end of the day, it didn’t make a whole lot of sense to make an inhuman line item to cut the program,” said Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, a Democrat from Chicago. Currently, more than 14,000 Illinoisans experience homelessness each night, according to a report from the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Although some legislators pushed for the increase in spending for human services, a recent budget projection from Quinn revealed the state plans to spend $507 million more than it will take in during the current fiscal year. The state is also set to hit $7 billion in overdue bills to vendors — including human service providers — by the end of FY 2012. As part of the projection, Quinn called for a 9 percent cut to state spending, with the exception of education and health care, paving the way for potentially large human services cuts in FY 2013.
While Feigenholtz acknowledges that FY 2012 was a difficult budget year, she said the state must address the backlog of bills, and she predicted that the next budget could possibly send major cuts to human services. “We have to start paying our bills and stop spending,” Feigenholtz said. “As bad as last year was, it may be a walk in the park compared to this year budget.”
As part of legislation that will keep some state institutions open through the current fiscal year, the Illinois General Assembly also approved more spending for some human services programs.
With all eyes on a plan to halt state facility closures and avert 1,900 layoff, the General Assembly was able to quietly restore millions to some human services programs statewide in cash-stricken times.
Teen Parent Services, which helps low-income parents younger than 20 receive their GEDs and offers parent training classes, received $1.4 million under Senate Bill 2412.“Redeploy Illinois,” a program designed to provide services to youth 13 to 18 years old who are in the juvenile system and are at high risk of being committed to the Department of Corrections, received $2.4 million.
Legislators also allocated $1.4 million to the state’s Homeless Prevention program. Sen. Heather Steans, one of the sponsors of the bill, said that if programs to address homelessness did not receive funding now, it would lead to larger problems and costs for the state because more people would end up in emergency rooms, institutionalized and on the streets. “We were making sure it was getting maintained, not cut out completely,” said Steans, a Chicago Democrat. Senate Democrats pushed for more human services spending last summer but lost when the House and Gov. Pat Quinn refused to go along with the plan.
The Homeless Prevention program was designed to help provide rental assistance, utility assistance and supportive services to individuals and families who are at risk of being evicted or entering foreclosure on their homes. For the past five years, the program has provided counseling, job preparation and assistance with rent or security deposits. It is administered by six centers in the Chicago area and more than 75 sites statewide that aim to help families remain in their homes by offering various programs such a one-month rental-assistance program and emergency funds for families.
According to the Department of Human Service’s website, the program served more than 14,000 households in Fiscal Year 2007. The state’s economic downturn has brought a growing demand for social services and left the state climbing to the top of the nation’s largest inventory of foreclosed homes. A May 2011 RealtyTrac report showed the Chicago metropolitan area had 118,776 homes in foreclosure.
“I think there’s a lot of cold people in the street in the winter months, and homeless families have it the worst. … At the end of the day, it didn’t make a whole lot of sense to make an inhuman line item to cut the program,” said Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, a Democrat from Chicago. Currently, more than 14,000 Illinoisans experience homelessness each night, according to a report from the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Although some legislators pushed for the increase in spending for human services, a recent budget projection from Quinn revealed the state plans to spend $507 million more than it will take in during the current fiscal year. The state is also set to hit $7 billion in overdue bills to vendors — including human service providers — by the end of FY 2012. As part of the projection, Quinn called for a 9 percent cut to state spending, with the exception of education and health care, paving the way for potentially large human services cuts in FY 2013.
While Feigenholtz acknowledges that FY 2012 was a difficult budget year, she said the state must address the backlog of bills, and she predicted that the next budget could possibly send major cuts to human services. “We have to start paying our bills and stop spending,” Feigenholtz said. “As bad as last year was, it may be a walk in the park compared to this year budget.”
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Lawmakers say budget deal fixed mistakes
By Jamey Dunn
A plan the General Assembly approved yesterday to shift money to and from various funds would correct what some lawmakers say were errors in the original budget they passed last spring.
The agreement that Gov. Pat Quinn and the legislative leaders reached yesterday was primarily meant to halt the looming closures of seven state facilities and the layoffs of almost 2,000 employees. However, additional money would be filtered toward human services programs, such as addiction treatment, mental health services and programs to combat homelessness. The plan would be paid for with money from Quinn's budget vetoes and transfers from state funds outside the General Revenue Fund.
Sara Moscato Howe, chief executive officer of the Illinois Alcohol and Drug Dependence Association, said that the original budget cut allocations for addiction treatment further than the House budgeting committee for human services intended. “We were reduced by about 25 percent when the budget came out in July, and that was not the intention of the legislature,” Moscato Howe said.
“It was essentially a math problem,” said Chicago Democratic Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, who heads the human services budgeting committee in the House. She said the committee was working off of last fiscal year’s spending numbers without accounting for an infusion of funds late in the fiscal year by Quinn to ensure that addiction treatment was funded through the end of FY 2011. “We found ourselves $28 million in the hole.” Feigenholtz said that the lump sum budgeting process that lawmakers resorted to for the first two years Quinn was in office made it difficult to track when and where Quinn may have shifted money. “Hopefully, now that we’re line-iteming our budgets again, these kinds of errors will not occur again.”
Feigenholtz said a cut to mental health services was also inadvertent, resulting from a much less complicated mistake. “The mental health cuts were a typographical error, frankly.” She said House members meant for the funding level to be approximately $143 million, but “somebody hit an extra one” and turned the number into $114 million. The House passed a trailer bill last spring to correct the issue, Feigenholtz said, but the Senate did not take it up for a floor vote. She said that before yesterday's vote to reallocate funds, the human services budget “was heading in the opposite direction than the committee had intended to move.”
Moscato Howe said addiction treatment providers had cut programs, laid off workers and extended waiting lists in the last six months because of what is now being described as an accidental cut. “We’ve been cut every single year. Without this restoration, we were down 50 percent from where we were in FY [20]09.” She said that addiction treatment has never been funded to a level that could offer “treatment on demand,” but she said new funds should help cut wait times for patients.
Feigenholtz said she hopes human services will stop being a primary target for cuts. While human services have seen some cuts during the current budget crisis, providers have also had several brushes with the possibly of debilitating cuts, only to have them scaled back at the 11th hour. “Human service providers, just like any businesses in this state, deserve predictability,” she said. “We have to get them off this roller coaster.”
Those hoping for more education dollars were disappointed by the plan approved yesterday. No funds would be put back into general state aid, which was cut under the House budget passed last spring, or school transportation funding, which was cut by Quinn’s vetoes.
“It would be wonderful if we could [restore general state aid funds],” David Vaught, Quinn’s budget director said. “That’s a policy objective of the governor he’d very much like to see addressed. …We’ve got a lot more to do on the education priorities.
“One hundred million dollars was vetoed out of the budget for education by the governor, and none of it was restored,” said Rep. Roger Eddy, who is a school superintendent in Hutsonville. “It was cut more than the other budgets.”
Eddy, who is the ranking Republican on the House education budgeting committee, pushed for more transportation spending in the FY 2012 that budget after Quinn had cut them from the FY 2011 budget. “All we’re doing is reimbursing districts for what’s required," Eddy said. But Quinn removed the money with his veto pen.
Eddy said that during negotiations for yesterday's deal, downstate lawmakers went through a list of funds looking for the approximately $30 million they believe is needed to go toward transportation, and they offered to give up more than $20 million out of funds that are vital to downstate Illinois. Eddy pointed specifically to $4.5 million moved out of a tourism promotions fund, $6 million from the Downstate Public Transit Fund, $1.4 million from a conservation fund and $1 million from a fund meant to address the digital divide that were included in the overall budget plan that passed yesterday.
“It’s almost like a bait and switch,” Eddy said. “Bottom line is, I’m not sure we would have agreed to taking that money out of downstate funds if it wasn’t going to go toward education.”
Vaught said Quinn’s administration negotiated with Republicans in both the House and Senate. “This agreement was put together with both sides of the aisle,” he said. “We did something that they haven’t been able to do in Washington -- you know, actually get both parties to agree to do spending changes and reductions.”
Pension fund
One fund transfer, out of a fund that feeds the State University Retirement System, raised eyebrows yesterday. Money from that fund, which contains dollars brought in from unclaimed property, normally goes into SURS, and then any shortfall from the required payment is covered through general revenue funds. The original budget did not appropriate $95 million from that fund. According to Senate Democratic staff, the money was sitting idle and would not go into SURS without legislation to move it. Lawmakers voted to push the $95 million into SURS and shifted the $95 million from general revenue funds to other spending in yesterday’s plan. So after that shell game, the total amount of money that would have ended up in the pension system -- without lawmakers voting to add more -- is still there.
A plan the General Assembly approved yesterday to shift money to and from various funds would correct what some lawmakers say were errors in the original budget they passed last spring.
The agreement that Gov. Pat Quinn and the legislative leaders reached yesterday was primarily meant to halt the looming closures of seven state facilities and the layoffs of almost 2,000 employees. However, additional money would be filtered toward human services programs, such as addiction treatment, mental health services and programs to combat homelessness. The plan would be paid for with money from Quinn's budget vetoes and transfers from state funds outside the General Revenue Fund.
Sara Moscato Howe, chief executive officer of the Illinois Alcohol and Drug Dependence Association, said that the original budget cut allocations for addiction treatment further than the House budgeting committee for human services intended. “We were reduced by about 25 percent when the budget came out in July, and that was not the intention of the legislature,” Moscato Howe said.
“It was essentially a math problem,” said Chicago Democratic Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, who heads the human services budgeting committee in the House. She said the committee was working off of last fiscal year’s spending numbers without accounting for an infusion of funds late in the fiscal year by Quinn to ensure that addiction treatment was funded through the end of FY 2011. “We found ourselves $28 million in the hole.” Feigenholtz said that the lump sum budgeting process that lawmakers resorted to for the first two years Quinn was in office made it difficult to track when and where Quinn may have shifted money. “Hopefully, now that we’re line-iteming our budgets again, these kinds of errors will not occur again.”
Feigenholtz said a cut to mental health services was also inadvertent, resulting from a much less complicated mistake. “The mental health cuts were a typographical error, frankly.” She said House members meant for the funding level to be approximately $143 million, but “somebody hit an extra one” and turned the number into $114 million. The House passed a trailer bill last spring to correct the issue, Feigenholtz said, but the Senate did not take it up for a floor vote. She said that before yesterday's vote to reallocate funds, the human services budget “was heading in the opposite direction than the committee had intended to move.”
Moscato Howe said addiction treatment providers had cut programs, laid off workers and extended waiting lists in the last six months because of what is now being described as an accidental cut. “We’ve been cut every single year. Without this restoration, we were down 50 percent from where we were in FY [20]09.” She said that addiction treatment has never been funded to a level that could offer “treatment on demand,” but she said new funds should help cut wait times for patients.
Feigenholtz said she hopes human services will stop being a primary target for cuts. While human services have seen some cuts during the current budget crisis, providers have also had several brushes with the possibly of debilitating cuts, only to have them scaled back at the 11th hour. “Human service providers, just like any businesses in this state, deserve predictability,” she said. “We have to get them off this roller coaster.”
Those hoping for more education dollars were disappointed by the plan approved yesterday. No funds would be put back into general state aid, which was cut under the House budget passed last spring, or school transportation funding, which was cut by Quinn’s vetoes.
“It would be wonderful if we could [restore general state aid funds],” David Vaught, Quinn’s budget director said. “That’s a policy objective of the governor he’d very much like to see addressed. …We’ve got a lot more to do on the education priorities.
“One hundred million dollars was vetoed out of the budget for education by the governor, and none of it was restored,” said Rep. Roger Eddy, who is a school superintendent in Hutsonville. “It was cut more than the other budgets.”
Eddy, who is the ranking Republican on the House education budgeting committee, pushed for more transportation spending in the FY 2012 that budget after Quinn had cut them from the FY 2011 budget. “All we’re doing is reimbursing districts for what’s required," Eddy said. But Quinn removed the money with his veto pen.
Eddy said that during negotiations for yesterday's deal, downstate lawmakers went through a list of funds looking for the approximately $30 million they believe is needed to go toward transportation, and they offered to give up more than $20 million out of funds that are vital to downstate Illinois. Eddy pointed specifically to $4.5 million moved out of a tourism promotions fund, $6 million from the Downstate Public Transit Fund, $1.4 million from a conservation fund and $1 million from a fund meant to address the digital divide that were included in the overall budget plan that passed yesterday.
“It’s almost like a bait and switch,” Eddy said. “Bottom line is, I’m not sure we would have agreed to taking that money out of downstate funds if it wasn’t going to go toward education.”
Vaught said Quinn’s administration negotiated with Republicans in both the House and Senate. “This agreement was put together with both sides of the aisle,” he said. “We did something that they haven’t been able to do in Washington -- you know, actually get both parties to agree to do spending changes and reductions.”
Pension fund
One fund transfer, out of a fund that feeds the State University Retirement System, raised eyebrows yesterday. Money from that fund, which contains dollars brought in from unclaimed property, normally goes into SURS, and then any shortfall from the required payment is covered through general revenue funds. The original budget did not appropriate $95 million from that fund. According to Senate Democratic staff, the money was sitting idle and would not go into SURS without legislation to move it. Lawmakers voted to push the $95 million into SURS and shifted the $95 million from general revenue funds to other spending in yesterday’s plan. So after that shell game, the total amount of money that would have ended up in the pension system -- without lawmakers voting to add more -- is still there.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Advocates support closures if handled with care
By Jamey Dunn
While some see Gov. Pat Quinn’s plan to close several state facilities as tinged with partisan politics or as a headline grabbing strategy to put the screws to state legislators over the budget, some advocates see it as an opportunity.
After Quinn announced the potential closure of seven facilities throughout the state as well as the layoffs of more than 1,900 state employees, some Republicans fired back. “Is this political payback and an attempt to ratchet up political pressure? Is that really the first place you need to go to save less than 1 percent of the budget?” Palatine Republican Sen. Matt Murphy asked of Quinn’s proposal.
The facilities Quinn said he plans to close are Tinley Park Mental Health Center, Singer Mental Health Center in Rockford, Jacksonville Developmental Center, Jack Mabley Developmental Center in Dixon, Logan Correction Center in Lincoln and Illinois Youth Center in Murphysboro. Quinn said the budget lawmakers sent him would not fund state agencies through the end of the fiscal year. He claims a shortfall of $313.5 million and said the closures would save about $54.8 million. Quinn said he is open to working with lawmakers in the fall veto session to close the budget gap, and potentially avoid some of the closures.
But advocates for the developmentally disabled say that the closure of state mental hospitals and developmental centers — if handled properly — would be a step in the right direction. In recent years, a movement has emerged to urge the state to move away from the model of large institutions and into so-called community care providers. For many individuals, that would mean moving into group homes that have far fewer residents and that could be closer to family and loved ones than state institutions. “We see this as a wonderful opportunity. When times are tough, there are some positives that can come out of it,” said Don Moss, coordinator for the Illinois Human Services Coalition. Moss said the state must take three steps to turn such closures into a positive for the developmentally disabled community. First, Moss said any residents of the facilities that may close who want to stay in an institutional setting should have an option to transfer to another facility. “We would hope that the great majority of the individuals would chose to move into the community, and we have to gut feeling that they will.”
Moss said that caring for institutionalized individuals can cost more than $150,000 a year. He said that currently, the state spends about $50,000 annually per person receiving care in a group home. He said, while shifting people to community care will result in savings, the funding level should increase to $75,000 per person.
Moss said that getting more funding for community care could be politically difficult, given the state’s budget woes, next year’s election looming in lawmakers’ minds and the power of the unions that represent the workers facing potential layoffs. “With an election next year and [the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees] being all-powerful, there may be pressure from legislators who want to keep the jobs in their district.” But Moss said “the needs of the individuals should be prioritized over jobs for state employees and over political consideration.”
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees can be expected to fight the closures and lobby lawmakers to do all they can to stop Quinn. “This course of action would be in direct violation of negotiated agreements with our union," Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, said in a prepared statement. "Moreover, it would have a dire impact on the maintenance of public safety and the delivery of services of vital importance to the people of Illinois." Bayer said that tough economic times have led to increased demands for state services, and the proposed closures and layoffs would “plunge state government into chaos.”
Moss said Quinn’s plan would also have to be undertaken gradually. “That would mean not dumping people into community programs that aren’t suitable for them or [placing residents in homes] they’re not ready for.” Moss said he thinks the state could meet Quinn’s goal of starting closures at the beginning of next year “if they begin now and plan carefully.” He said if the state rushes and floods the community care infrastructure with new clients, it would create the potential for mistakes that would set the movement back. “If there’s a series of catastrophes in the community [care] it’s going to slow down and potentially halt such movement into the community,” Moss warned. “It has to be done well or not done at all.”
Rep. Patricia Bellock, a Hinsdale Republican, agreed that Quinn’s plan could be an opportunity for those who would like to see the state’s mental health hospitals and developmental centers closed. “That is what people want. That is what the disabled community wants.” Bellock, the top Republican on the House’s Human Services Committee, said patients should be able to choose where they will go, and state funding should follow them in that choice. Bellock said that when the state closed the Howe Developmental Center in Tinley Park last year, about two thirds of patients were transferred to other institutions, while one third went elsewhere, including community care facilities. Bellock does not agree with advocates such as Moss who say that all the state’s large facilities should be closed. “I feel that there probably needs to be a couple.”
Moss said members of his community hope that Quinn’s plan is genuine and not just an attempt to twist arms over budget decisions. Social services providers, as well as those needing treatment for mental illness and developmental disabilities, have been on a roller coaster ride during much of Quinn’s administration as he has threatened substantial cuts during difficult budget negotiations, only to later roll back proposed reductions. “We have to grab hold of this situation and hope to maintain the momentum,” He said of Quinn’s latest plan.
Check back tomorrow for perspectives on Quinn's plan from the juvenile justice community.
While some see Gov. Pat Quinn’s plan to close several state facilities as tinged with partisan politics or as a headline grabbing strategy to put the screws to state legislators over the budget, some advocates see it as an opportunity.
After Quinn announced the potential closure of seven facilities throughout the state as well as the layoffs of more than 1,900 state employees, some Republicans fired back. “Is this political payback and an attempt to ratchet up political pressure? Is that really the first place you need to go to save less than 1 percent of the budget?” Palatine Republican Sen. Matt Murphy asked of Quinn’s proposal.
The facilities Quinn said he plans to close are Tinley Park Mental Health Center, Singer Mental Health Center in Rockford, Jacksonville Developmental Center, Jack Mabley Developmental Center in Dixon, Logan Correction Center in Lincoln and Illinois Youth Center in Murphysboro. Quinn said the budget lawmakers sent him would not fund state agencies through the end of the fiscal year. He claims a shortfall of $313.5 million and said the closures would save about $54.8 million. Quinn said he is open to working with lawmakers in the fall veto session to close the budget gap, and potentially avoid some of the closures.
But advocates for the developmentally disabled say that the closure of state mental hospitals and developmental centers — if handled properly — would be a step in the right direction. In recent years, a movement has emerged to urge the state to move away from the model of large institutions and into so-called community care providers. For many individuals, that would mean moving into group homes that have far fewer residents and that could be closer to family and loved ones than state institutions. “We see this as a wonderful opportunity. When times are tough, there are some positives that can come out of it,” said Don Moss, coordinator for the Illinois Human Services Coalition. Moss said the state must take three steps to turn such closures into a positive for the developmentally disabled community. First, Moss said any residents of the facilities that may close who want to stay in an institutional setting should have an option to transfer to another facility. “We would hope that the great majority of the individuals would chose to move into the community, and we have to gut feeling that they will.”
Moss said that caring for institutionalized individuals can cost more than $150,000 a year. He said that currently, the state spends about $50,000 annually per person receiving care in a group home. He said, while shifting people to community care will result in savings, the funding level should increase to $75,000 per person.
Moss said that getting more funding for community care could be politically difficult, given the state’s budget woes, next year’s election looming in lawmakers’ minds and the power of the unions that represent the workers facing potential layoffs. “With an election next year and [the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees] being all-powerful, there may be pressure from legislators who want to keep the jobs in their district.” But Moss said “the needs of the individuals should be prioritized over jobs for state employees and over political consideration.”
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees can be expected to fight the closures and lobby lawmakers to do all they can to stop Quinn. “This course of action would be in direct violation of negotiated agreements with our union," Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, said in a prepared statement. "Moreover, it would have a dire impact on the maintenance of public safety and the delivery of services of vital importance to the people of Illinois." Bayer said that tough economic times have led to increased demands for state services, and the proposed closures and layoffs would “plunge state government into chaos.”
Moss said Quinn’s plan would also have to be undertaken gradually. “That would mean not dumping people into community programs that aren’t suitable for them or [placing residents in homes] they’re not ready for.” Moss said he thinks the state could meet Quinn’s goal of starting closures at the beginning of next year “if they begin now and plan carefully.” He said if the state rushes and floods the community care infrastructure with new clients, it would create the potential for mistakes that would set the movement back. “If there’s a series of catastrophes in the community [care] it’s going to slow down and potentially halt such movement into the community,” Moss warned. “It has to be done well or not done at all.”
Rep. Patricia Bellock, a Hinsdale Republican, agreed that Quinn’s plan could be an opportunity for those who would like to see the state’s mental health hospitals and developmental centers closed. “That is what people want. That is what the disabled community wants.” Bellock, the top Republican on the House’s Human Services Committee, said patients should be able to choose where they will go, and state funding should follow them in that choice. Bellock said that when the state closed the Howe Developmental Center in Tinley Park last year, about two thirds of patients were transferred to other institutions, while one third went elsewhere, including community care facilities. Bellock does not agree with advocates such as Moss who say that all the state’s large facilities should be closed. “I feel that there probably needs to be a couple.”
Moss said members of his community hope that Quinn’s plan is genuine and not just an attempt to twist arms over budget decisions. Social services providers, as well as those needing treatment for mental illness and developmental disabilities, have been on a roller coaster ride during much of Quinn’s administration as he has threatened substantial cuts during difficult budget negotiations, only to later roll back proposed reductions. “We have to grab hold of this situation and hope to maintain the momentum,” He said of Quinn’s latest plan.
Check back tomorrow for perspectives on Quinn's plan from the juvenile justice community.
Tuesday, September 06, 2011
Quinn: "I’m prepared to do what has to be done"
By Jamey Dunn
Gov. Pat Quinn says he may have to make drastic cuts and violate an agreement made with public unions to stretch the state budget through the end of the current fiscal year.
The Chicago Tribune reported today that Quinn plans to lay off thousands of state workers and close several sate facilities. Potentially on the list for closure are prisons, juvenile detention centers and mental health hospitals, according to the Tribune. Quinn would not say which facilities would be slated for closure or how many state workers would be out of a job, only saying that his plan would be carried out in an “orderly way according to the law.” Quinn told reporters in Chicago today that he plans to give more details about the layoffs later this week. “It’s very clear that as we went through this fiscal year, we’re going to come up short in a lot of departments. So we have to act now so we don’t come up short,” he said.
Quinn argues that the budget sent to him by lawmakers will not fully fund state agencies through the year. “There’s no question that their decisions will result in a situation where our state won’t have enough money to get through the fiscal year, so we have to make reductions. I’m prepared to do what has to be done,” Quinn said. The governor refused to give union members raises that are included in their contracts because he says lawmakers did not include the money for pay increases in the budget. The American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees has sued the state over the raises.
If he lays off state workers, the governor will violate an agreement he made with unions shortly before his election last year. Quinn says that such agreement, as well as bargained contracts, are subject to the spending authority given by lawmakers. “The law of Illinois is crystal clear. Everybody knows what it is. … If the General Assembly appropriates less money, then everyone has to adjust to that.”
Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, said Quinn has not notified his organization about any plans to close facilities or layoff workers. “This course of action would be in direct violation of negotiated agreements with our union. Moreover, it would have a dire impact on the maintenance of public safety and the delivery of services of vital importance to the people of Illinois,” Bayer said in a written statement.
Sen. Bill Brady, a Bloomington Republican, speculated that Quinn may be threatening closures to put pressure on the legislature to make budget changes. “This is a governor who just flips and flops and backs out on every promise he made,” Brady told WJBC. “The games he plays are costly.” He said the deal Quinn made with public employee unions would have been impossible to honor, given the state’s dire fiscal situation. “It was a simple political solution for him at the time.” Quinn’s narrow victory over Brady in the gubernatorial race came in part because of union driven get-out-the-vote efforts. Quinn did not seem concerned today about losing the backing of organized labor, a long-time Democratic ally in the state. “I have many many friends in labor. I have enjoyed their support, and I will continue to enjoy their support, and I look forward to working with members of labor on all kinds of battles ahead."
Brady said he thinks any facility closures will be politically motivated and concentrated in Republican lawmakers’ legislative districts.
Quinn says he is willing to work with lawmakers to tweak the budget in other ways. “We can come together, the legislature and the governor. And if they want to make adjustments on their decisions of the spring, I am willing to negotiate and have a dialogue with them.” Quinn has a history of threatening budget reductions that make splashy headlines and outrage groups that are willing and able to raise a fuss publicly and put pressure on lawmakers, only to later roll back the cuts. However, several other states—including many of Illinois’ Midwestern neighbors—are targeting unions for cost savings since the financial collapse and ensuing recession.
Gov. Pat Quinn says he may have to make drastic cuts and violate an agreement made with public unions to stretch the state budget through the end of the current fiscal year.
The Chicago Tribune reported today that Quinn plans to lay off thousands of state workers and close several sate facilities. Potentially on the list for closure are prisons, juvenile detention centers and mental health hospitals, according to the Tribune. Quinn would not say which facilities would be slated for closure or how many state workers would be out of a job, only saying that his plan would be carried out in an “orderly way according to the law.” Quinn told reporters in Chicago today that he plans to give more details about the layoffs later this week. “It’s very clear that as we went through this fiscal year, we’re going to come up short in a lot of departments. So we have to act now so we don’t come up short,” he said.
Quinn argues that the budget sent to him by lawmakers will not fully fund state agencies through the year. “There’s no question that their decisions will result in a situation where our state won’t have enough money to get through the fiscal year, so we have to make reductions. I’m prepared to do what has to be done,” Quinn said. The governor refused to give union members raises that are included in their contracts because he says lawmakers did not include the money for pay increases in the budget. The American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees has sued the state over the raises.
If he lays off state workers, the governor will violate an agreement he made with unions shortly before his election last year. Quinn says that such agreement, as well as bargained contracts, are subject to the spending authority given by lawmakers. “The law of Illinois is crystal clear. Everybody knows what it is. … If the General Assembly appropriates less money, then everyone has to adjust to that.”
Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, said Quinn has not notified his organization about any plans to close facilities or layoff workers. “This course of action would be in direct violation of negotiated agreements with our union. Moreover, it would have a dire impact on the maintenance of public safety and the delivery of services of vital importance to the people of Illinois,” Bayer said in a written statement.
Sen. Bill Brady, a Bloomington Republican, speculated that Quinn may be threatening closures to put pressure on the legislature to make budget changes. “This is a governor who just flips and flops and backs out on every promise he made,” Brady told WJBC. “The games he plays are costly.” He said the deal Quinn made with public employee unions would have been impossible to honor, given the state’s dire fiscal situation. “It was a simple political solution for him at the time.” Quinn’s narrow victory over Brady in the gubernatorial race came in part because of union driven get-out-the-vote efforts. Quinn did not seem concerned today about losing the backing of organized labor, a long-time Democratic ally in the state. “I have many many friends in labor. I have enjoyed their support, and I will continue to enjoy their support, and I look forward to working with members of labor on all kinds of battles ahead."
Brady said he thinks any facility closures will be politically motivated and concentrated in Republican lawmakers’ legislative districts.
Quinn says he is willing to work with lawmakers to tweak the budget in other ways. “We can come together, the legislature and the governor. And if they want to make adjustments on their decisions of the spring, I am willing to negotiate and have a dialogue with them.” Quinn has a history of threatening budget reductions that make splashy headlines and outrage groups that are willing and able to raise a fuss publicly and put pressure on lawmakers, only to later roll back the cuts. However, several other states—including many of Illinois’ Midwestern neighbors—are targeting unions for cost savings since the financial collapse and ensuing recession.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Budget deal reached to keep construction going
By Jamey Dunn
Lawmakers have reached a deal in an impasse over spending that threatened to stall construction projects throughout Illinois.
Last month, in the closing days of the legislative session, the Senate approved the House’s budget proposal, which was based on a revenue estimate for Fiscal Year 2012 that was about $1 billion less than the Senate’s projection. However, Senate Democrats tacked on additional spending, primarily for human services and education, to the FY 2012 spending bill for the capital plan. The House did not vote on the bill, and Gov. Pat Quinn warned that lawmakers must approve the construction spending or projects could begin to shut down as early as tomorrow. Lawmakers are scheduled to hold legislative session to take up the issue next Wednesday. FY 2012 begins July 1.
Senate Democrats have backed off the extra funding for now. "The state's construction program should continue uninterrupted. The Senate intends to return to the Capitol on Wednesday to fully fund the construction program for the full 12-month period,” Senate President John Cullerton said in a prepared statement.
However, they maintain that the budget is incomplete and say something will have to be done down the road, presumable during the fall veto session. “There are still major structural deficiencies in the House budget that will become clear in the months ahead. I look forward to having the opportunity to address issues such as the underfunding of education and social service commitments,” Cullerton said.
While the $430 million in spending that some Senate Democrats want is not much when put up against the House’s overall $33.2 billion plan, those in human services and education say it would have gone a long way. Meanwhile, Republicans say no amount of money is worth tying up job-creating construction projects in a political battle and any more spending is irresponsible. “It’s unconscionable to put thousands of jobs and projects in jeopardy over a political issue,” said Patty Schuh, spokesperson for Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno. Quinn also called for lawmakers to approve a “clean” capital spending bill with no additional appropriations.
“It’s a very delicate balance I think that we have to achieve. Just like people do at home and at work, when you make a decision about what are the most priority items to fund when you are looking at difficult times,” said Park Ridge Democratic Sen. Dan Kotowski, who sponsored the additional spending. Kotowski said the spending would have restored aid to some of the most vulnerable residents of the state. He said that some of the cuts in the House budget could open the state up for legal challenges because it is required by law to fund certain programs. Adding that some of the House cuts “not only present us with legal problems federally, [they’re] also morally unconscionable.”
Don Moss, coordinator for the Illinois Human Services Coalition, broke down what was at stake for human services:
The bulk of the restoration, $212 million, would have gone to fully fund general state aid to K-12 schools, which is paid on a per pupil basis. “[The cut in the House budget] will have the greatest impact on the least wealthy districts as far as property tax base and districts that have the highest concentration on low-income students,” Larry Joseph, director of budget and tax policy initiative for Voices for Illinois Children, said of the potential cut. “It won’t be an impact that is spread evenly across school districts and among students.” He said if the House's cut is approved by Quinn as is, general state aid would be the lowest it has been since 2007. Joseph said the general state aid reduction has gotten the most attention. “But it’s not the only thing, and it’s important to understand that.”
He said if Quinn signs the approved budget, grants for early childhood education will be slashed by $17 million, leaving 4,000 children without preschool. He added that the grants have been cut in recent years, leaving an estimated 8,000 children without preschool. He cited a recent study commissioned by child advocacy groups Voices for Illinois Children and The Ounce of Prevention Fund, from the research arm of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, a nonprofit health and human services organization. The report concluded that investments in early childhood education are cost-effective and save the state spending in other areas, such as corrections and social services. “At the very time that this comes out that the investment is well worth it … we’re making these cuts in preschool. It doesn’t make sense," he said. The day after regular session adjourned, Quinn chastised lawmakers for cutting early childhood programs as well as MAP grants.
Joseph said some smaller programs, such as a new teacher mentoring program that would be eliminated, will join other less costly programs, such as summer offerings for struggling students, that have been eliminated in recent years. “These are relative small programs, but obviously, it has a big impact if you eliminate it because whatever it is it was doing it is not doing at all anymore.”
Joseph said while the additional spending may not seem like much compared with the entire budget, “for education and human services both, there’s a lot at stake.”
Schuh said when it comes to the budget, Republicans are willing to negotiate, but the capital bill should not come into play. Republicans backed a $5 billion to $6 billion spending cut from Gov. Pat Quinn’s budget plan to ensure that the recent income tax increase remains temporary, as it is written. The House budget represents a less than $3 billion reduction from the governor’s proposal. Senate Democrats have argued that shifts could be made to accommodate their requests without increasing the total spending for FY 2012.
However, Schuh called such plans “smokescreen” and said any additional funds that are found should go to pay down the state’s billions of dollars in late bills. Republican votes will be needed to approve any new legislation for the rest of this calendar year. It appears that on this issue, Republicans used their newfound leverage to get what they wanted. Before the Senate Democrats conceded today, Schuh said: “It’s simply not in the cards. It’s irresponsible. … We are absolutely dug in. It’s not going to happen.”
Lawmakers have reached a deal in an impasse over spending that threatened to stall construction projects throughout Illinois.
Last month, in the closing days of the legislative session, the Senate approved the House’s budget proposal, which was based on a revenue estimate for Fiscal Year 2012 that was about $1 billion less than the Senate’s projection. However, Senate Democrats tacked on additional spending, primarily for human services and education, to the FY 2012 spending bill for the capital plan. The House did not vote on the bill, and Gov. Pat Quinn warned that lawmakers must approve the construction spending or projects could begin to shut down as early as tomorrow. Lawmakers are scheduled to hold legislative session to take up the issue next Wednesday. FY 2012 begins July 1.
Senate Democrats have backed off the extra funding for now. "The state's construction program should continue uninterrupted. The Senate intends to return to the Capitol on Wednesday to fully fund the construction program for the full 12-month period,” Senate President John Cullerton said in a prepared statement.
However, they maintain that the budget is incomplete and say something will have to be done down the road, presumable during the fall veto session. “There are still major structural deficiencies in the House budget that will become clear in the months ahead. I look forward to having the opportunity to address issues such as the underfunding of education and social service commitments,” Cullerton said.
While the $430 million in spending that some Senate Democrats want is not much when put up against the House’s overall $33.2 billion plan, those in human services and education say it would have gone a long way. Meanwhile, Republicans say no amount of money is worth tying up job-creating construction projects in a political battle and any more spending is irresponsible. “It’s unconscionable to put thousands of jobs and projects in jeopardy over a political issue,” said Patty Schuh, spokesperson for Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno. Quinn also called for lawmakers to approve a “clean” capital spending bill with no additional appropriations.
“It’s a very delicate balance I think that we have to achieve. Just like people do at home and at work, when you make a decision about what are the most priority items to fund when you are looking at difficult times,” said Park Ridge Democratic Sen. Dan Kotowski, who sponsored the additional spending. Kotowski said the spending would have restored aid to some of the most vulnerable residents of the state. He said that some of the cuts in the House budget could open the state up for legal challenges because it is required by law to fund certain programs. Adding that some of the House cuts “not only present us with legal problems federally, [they’re] also morally unconscionable.”
Don Moss, coordinator for the Illinois Human Services Coalition, broke down what was at stake for human services:
- $1.2 million for epilepsy programs.
- $19.9 for state operated mental health facilities.
- $2.9 in grants for community care for mental health patients.
- $4.2 million for children’s mental health in-home care.
- $1.5 for addiction treatment.
The bulk of the restoration, $212 million, would have gone to fully fund general state aid to K-12 schools, which is paid on a per pupil basis. “[The cut in the House budget] will have the greatest impact on the least wealthy districts as far as property tax base and districts that have the highest concentration on low-income students,” Larry Joseph, director of budget and tax policy initiative for Voices for Illinois Children, said of the potential cut. “It won’t be an impact that is spread evenly across school districts and among students.” He said if the House's cut is approved by Quinn as is, general state aid would be the lowest it has been since 2007. Joseph said the general state aid reduction has gotten the most attention. “But it’s not the only thing, and it’s important to understand that.”
He said if Quinn signs the approved budget, grants for early childhood education will be slashed by $17 million, leaving 4,000 children without preschool. He added that the grants have been cut in recent years, leaving an estimated 8,000 children without preschool. He cited a recent study commissioned by child advocacy groups Voices for Illinois Children and The Ounce of Prevention Fund, from the research arm of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, a nonprofit health and human services organization. The report concluded that investments in early childhood education are cost-effective and save the state spending in other areas, such as corrections and social services. “At the very time that this comes out that the investment is well worth it … we’re making these cuts in preschool. It doesn’t make sense," he said. The day after regular session adjourned, Quinn chastised lawmakers for cutting early childhood programs as well as MAP grants.
Joseph said some smaller programs, such as a new teacher mentoring program that would be eliminated, will join other less costly programs, such as summer offerings for struggling students, that have been eliminated in recent years. “These are relative small programs, but obviously, it has a big impact if you eliminate it because whatever it is it was doing it is not doing at all anymore.”
Joseph said while the additional spending may not seem like much compared with the entire budget, “for education and human services both, there’s a lot at stake.”
Schuh said when it comes to the budget, Republicans are willing to negotiate, but the capital bill should not come into play. Republicans backed a $5 billion to $6 billion spending cut from Gov. Pat Quinn’s budget plan to ensure that the recent income tax increase remains temporary, as it is written. The House budget represents a less than $3 billion reduction from the governor’s proposal. Senate Democrats have argued that shifts could be made to accommodate their requests without increasing the total spending for FY 2012.
However, Schuh called such plans “smokescreen” and said any additional funds that are found should go to pay down the state’s billions of dollars in late bills. Republican votes will be needed to approve any new legislation for the rest of this calendar year. It appears that on this issue, Republicans used their newfound leverage to get what they wanted. Before the Senate Democrats conceded today, Schuh said: “It’s simply not in the cards. It’s irresponsible. … We are absolutely dug in. It’s not going to happen.”
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Plans for session, but no agreement
By Jamey Dunn
Illinois lawmakers will return to the Statehouse next week in hopes of hashing out a plan to keep the state’s capital construction projects rolling. However, some Democrats still want to see additional spending added to the budget approved last month.
Senate Democrats tacked on to the House's budget $430 million in spending, which would go primarily to fund social services and education, by tying it to the funding for construction projects for the next fiscal year. The House did not take up the Senate’s changes to the bill, and Gov. Pat Quinn warned that projects could start grinding to a halt as early as Friday if the funding is not approved.
Leaders of both legislative chambers agreed to call members back next Wednesday, so they say there will be no need to call a costlier special session. Lawmakers could also take up other legislation and would not be restricted by the special session requirement that they stick to the topic they were called back to address.
However, after a meeting today among the four legislative leaders and the governor, a compromise to address budget issues does not appear close at hand. “At this point [House] Speaker [Michael Madigan] remains willing and anxious to work cooperatively with the governor and the Senate,” said Steve Brown, Madigan's spokesman. “I don’t think there are any specifics from our side that have come out as a result of the meeting today.”
Park Ridge Democratic Sen. Dan Kotowski, who led one of the Senate’s two budgeting committees, said before today’s meeting that the leaders would discuss approving construction spending for six months with the understanding that other budget issues would be up for consideration when the capital spending ran out. Don Moss, coordinator for the Illinois Human Services Coalition, said he would support such a plan because he believes lawmakers will likely discover as they begin to see revenue come in next fiscal year that the House estimate the budget was based on was low. “My feeling is that the House underestimated the potential revenue for the new fiscal year,” Moss said. “Once these cuts go into place, it’s difficult to get them back, so whatever works.”
It appears that Senate President John Cullerton floated the idea, only to have it shot down. “The Senate president went into today's meeting with an alternative to address all the leaders' concerns and ensure that the construction program continues for the next six months. That option was rejected. He intends to consult with his members to find consensus on how Senate Democrats plan to proceed,” said John Patterson, a spokesman for Cullerton.
A Quinn spokeswoman told reporters after the meeting in Chicago that the governor wants lawmakers to approve a “clean” capital bill with no additonal spending. She said Quinn wants to address the budget again when lawmakers return for veto session in the fall. Quinn called the budget “incomplete” the day after lawmakers adjourned the spring session, saying education was not properly funded. A written statement issued by the governor’s office said: “In a meeting today with the legislative leaders, the governor pushed for a 12-month capital appropriations bill with no conditions. He emphasized that without agreement on a capital bill, we will lose 52,000 jobs and irreparably damage our economic recovery. The governor proposed to have a sincere conversation with the legislative leaders in the fall to discuss reallocation of funding within the $33.2 billion state budget, based on the Senate Democrats' priorities. The legislative leaders will present these proposals to their respective caucuses, and the governor has asked them to come to agreement before Friday.”
Kotowski said there are options to add in the $430 million in spending without breaking the House’s revenue estimates. One example he gave was Senate proposals, not yet approved by the House, that would cut government operations, such as the budgets for constitutional officers. He says the cuts would represent $74 million that could be spent elsewhere. “We could hit that number. … We could get the money that we need without increasing spending whatsoever,” Kotowski said. “I would hope to see more willingness on the House side to see more cuts … in order to fund these people who don’t have a voice in government.”
According to Larry Joseph, director of budget and tax policy initiative for Voices for Illinois Children, the budget implementation bill did not include $297 million in transfers from the General Revenue fund to other state funds that the House originally planned for. “That constitutes a spending cut,” he said.
Joseph added that the process of automatically transferring money to funds needs more transparency because some funds, such as the Local Government Distributive Fund — which will not see a reduction in the approved budget — do not have other revenue sources, but other funds get money elsewhere and may not need as much from the operating budget. “The whole area of statutory transfers is very murky,” Joseph said. “A lot of them are just never scrutinized. They’re on automatic pilot.”
Whatever lawmakers decide to do in the end, be it passing capital spending for six month or a year with no additional General Revenue Fund spending, restoring some amount of the proposed spending from Senate Democrats possibly by shifting around money to fund some of the costs, or another as-of yet-unforeseen solution, Republicans will have a seat at the table because the General Assembly has exceeded the May 31 deadline to pass the budget with a simple majority. Anything passed now will require a three-fifths majority and Republican votes in both chambers. Inquiries to both Republican leaders’ spokespersons for comment were not returned.
Illinois lawmakers will return to the Statehouse next week in hopes of hashing out a plan to keep the state’s capital construction projects rolling. However, some Democrats still want to see additional spending added to the budget approved last month.
Senate Democrats tacked on to the House's budget $430 million in spending, which would go primarily to fund social services and education, by tying it to the funding for construction projects for the next fiscal year. The House did not take up the Senate’s changes to the bill, and Gov. Pat Quinn warned that projects could start grinding to a halt as early as Friday if the funding is not approved.
Leaders of both legislative chambers agreed to call members back next Wednesday, so they say there will be no need to call a costlier special session. Lawmakers could also take up other legislation and would not be restricted by the special session requirement that they stick to the topic they were called back to address.
However, after a meeting today among the four legislative leaders and the governor, a compromise to address budget issues does not appear close at hand. “At this point [House] Speaker [Michael Madigan] remains willing and anxious to work cooperatively with the governor and the Senate,” said Steve Brown, Madigan's spokesman. “I don’t think there are any specifics from our side that have come out as a result of the meeting today.”
Park Ridge Democratic Sen. Dan Kotowski, who led one of the Senate’s two budgeting committees, said before today’s meeting that the leaders would discuss approving construction spending for six months with the understanding that other budget issues would be up for consideration when the capital spending ran out. Don Moss, coordinator for the Illinois Human Services Coalition, said he would support such a plan because he believes lawmakers will likely discover as they begin to see revenue come in next fiscal year that the House estimate the budget was based on was low. “My feeling is that the House underestimated the potential revenue for the new fiscal year,” Moss said. “Once these cuts go into place, it’s difficult to get them back, so whatever works.”
It appears that Senate President John Cullerton floated the idea, only to have it shot down. “The Senate president went into today's meeting with an alternative to address all the leaders' concerns and ensure that the construction program continues for the next six months. That option was rejected. He intends to consult with his members to find consensus on how Senate Democrats plan to proceed,” said John Patterson, a spokesman for Cullerton.
A Quinn spokeswoman told reporters after the meeting in Chicago that the governor wants lawmakers to approve a “clean” capital bill with no additonal spending. She said Quinn wants to address the budget again when lawmakers return for veto session in the fall. Quinn called the budget “incomplete” the day after lawmakers adjourned the spring session, saying education was not properly funded. A written statement issued by the governor’s office said: “In a meeting today with the legislative leaders, the governor pushed for a 12-month capital appropriations bill with no conditions. He emphasized that without agreement on a capital bill, we will lose 52,000 jobs and irreparably damage our economic recovery. The governor proposed to have a sincere conversation with the legislative leaders in the fall to discuss reallocation of funding within the $33.2 billion state budget, based on the Senate Democrats' priorities. The legislative leaders will present these proposals to their respective caucuses, and the governor has asked them to come to agreement before Friday.”
Kotowski said there are options to add in the $430 million in spending without breaking the House’s revenue estimates. One example he gave was Senate proposals, not yet approved by the House, that would cut government operations, such as the budgets for constitutional officers. He says the cuts would represent $74 million that could be spent elsewhere. “We could hit that number. … We could get the money that we need without increasing spending whatsoever,” Kotowski said. “I would hope to see more willingness on the House side to see more cuts … in order to fund these people who don’t have a voice in government.”
According to Larry Joseph, director of budget and tax policy initiative for Voices for Illinois Children, the budget implementation bill did not include $297 million in transfers from the General Revenue fund to other state funds that the House originally planned for. “That constitutes a spending cut,” he said.
Joseph added that the process of automatically transferring money to funds needs more transparency because some funds, such as the Local Government Distributive Fund — which will not see a reduction in the approved budget — do not have other revenue sources, but other funds get money elsewhere and may not need as much from the operating budget. “The whole area of statutory transfers is very murky,” Joseph said. “A lot of them are just never scrutinized. They’re on automatic pilot.”
Whatever lawmakers decide to do in the end, be it passing capital spending for six month or a year with no additional General Revenue Fund spending, restoring some amount of the proposed spending from Senate Democrats possibly by shifting around money to fund some of the costs, or another as-of yet-unforeseen solution, Republicans will have a seat at the table because the General Assembly has exceeded the May 31 deadline to pass the budget with a simple majority. Anything passed now will require a three-fifths majority and Republican votes in both chambers. Inquiries to both Republican leaders’ spokespersons for comment were not returned.
Monday, June 06, 2011
Quinn calls for special session to keep projects rolling
By Jamey Dunn
Calling for a special legislative session, Gov. Pat Quinn said today that lawmakers must approve spending for capital projects or construction could begin to shut down as early as next week.
“[The capital bill] was the largest investment in the history of Illinois in our roads, our highways, our bridges, our schools, our water systems, our rail systems, our broadband deployment. It was a huge public works agenda and project, and it’s the law of Illinois,” Quinn said as a Chicago news conference today. “Unfortunately the legislature went home last week without passing legislation to fund this year — this coming [fiscal] year beginning July 1 — the money necessary to pay for these projects.”
Lawmakers adjourned the regular legislative session last week without passing a bill that would approve the spending for construction projects for the next fiscal year. Senate Democrats tried to force a vote on about $430 million in spending that they wanted to tack onto the House’s budget proposal. Instead of voting on the measure, House Speaker Michael Madigan called for the creation of a conference committee, a group of members from both chambers and both parties tasked to hash out differences when the Senate and House cannot agree on a piece of legislation. Senate President John Cullerton did not follow suit, and the Senate wrapped up regular the spring session without putting its own members on a conference committee.
Now Quinn says lawmakers failed to get the job done, and he plans to meet with the four legislative leaders to “promptly” schedule a specially session to avoid what he called a “job crisis.” Quinn said that if the funding is not approved, he would have to start the process of shutting down construction projects on June 17. “This is something that has to be done. This is not a matter that’s optional. This is mandatory. These men [working on construction projects], they have to work. And they don’t want to be told on the 17th of this month that Springfield didn’t work for them and, ‘You’re off the job.’”
According to the Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association, a full shutdown would put 31,000 people out of work and cost the state about $30 million initially and $3 million a day for as long as work is called off.
Some House members say there is no need for the construction projects to be shut down so quickly. They maintain that an extension of the state’s lapse period, the time the state has after the close of the fiscal year to continue paying off bills from that fiscal year, would allow ongoing construction projects to continue. “We’ve sold bonds and the money is there. … The bond proceeds are there. The projects will continue,” Spring Valley Democratic Rep. Frank Mautino, a House Democratic budgeting point man, said on the last day of regular session.
He added that the extension of the lapse period from August through December would allow contractors on existing projects to continue submitting bills past the end of this fiscal year, and the state can continue paying for ongoing work. “So now, all those projects that are ongoing can just continue without a re-appropriation. … So we don’t need to do that bill.”
Steve Brown, spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan, echoed Mautino’s take on the issue. “The lapse period would allow the state to continue to pay bills and beyond that, we will continue to cooperate with the governor.” When asked if he thought lawmakers would return to the Statehouse next week, he repeated, “We’re cooperating with the governor.”
However, Kent Redfield, an emeritus political science professor at the University of Illinois Springfield, said that the House’s attempt to use lapse period spending to keep the capital projects going won’t fly. “You appropriate money for a certain period of time, and that’s the authorization to spend, and once that’s up that’s up. … You can’t engage in new spending after July 1 because it’s a new fiscal year, and you don’t have any statutory authority.”
Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka said she has asked her legal counsel to review the issue and determine how long she can continue to pay bills for capital projects. “My office will continue to pay state contractors for as long as legally possible, but ultimately, this question must be addressed by the General Assembly and governor. If that means calling an immediate special session, so be it. One thing is certain: Our families and businesses are already struggling and paying more than ever before to state government; they deserve better than to be subjected to a high-priced game of legislative chicken over the capital bill,” Topinka said in a written statement.
None of the legislative leaders would give specifics on when they might return for a special session. “It is our understanding that there is a bill in the Senate that would give the governor the authority to continue the capital program for the next fiscal year. We encourage the senators to pass that bill as soon as possible. Unfortunately, at the end of session last week, Senate Democrats tried to tack on an extra $400 million of extra spending, which was unacceptable in the House. We are always willing to discuss our options, but the clearest one at this point is for the Senate to pass [House Bill] 2189, without additional spending amendments, to the governor. This bill appropriates funds for the FY12 capital and road programs immediately. This important jobs creation bill should not be held hostage by additional requests for more spending in the budget,” Sarah Wojcicki, spokesperson for House Minority Leader Tom Cross, said in a written statement.
But Quinn today continued to back the Senate Democrats’ call for additional spending. “I think the General Assembly gets an incomplete when it comes to their budget. I don’t think they properly invested in important things like schools and other things that matter to everyday people.”
Redfield said, “[The issue at hand ] is obviously not the capital bill. It’s about the Senate Democrats and the governor wanting to appropriate additional dollars for education and human services.”
But adding more spending seems even less likely in a special session, when Republican votes would be needed to pass the appropriations for the capital bill. “They’ve already taken the tough votes. They’ve already voted to cut this stuff,” Redfield said.
He predicts there may be minor concessions on both sides, but that the dispute will instead likely be pushed off into the fall veto session, when there will likely be a clearer picture of how much money lawmakers have to work with. “This is a lot easier to play out in the fall, where you know where you are on gaming, and you know where you are in revenue.”
Quinn has yet to act on a large gaming package passed in the last days of the session that could potentially bring in billions of dollars in new revenue. While he supports a casino in Chicago, he has said that he thinks the bill, which calls for five new casinos and slots at horse racing tracks, may be too large of an expansion.
Quinn also lost a large potential bargaining chip when he signed off on the new legislative districts for state lawmakers last Friday. When asked about the move today, he told reporters, “This isn’t a matter to bargain.”
Redfield said the short time frame Quinn is giving could make it very hard for lawmakers to do more than pass a bill that extends capital spending into the fall and possibly take up the issue later. He said Quinn’s oft-repeated tactic of threatening to cut off a popular state program or service to spur the legislature to action does not have a track record of success. “That’s just a recipe for disaster. Either because you’re always kind of wimping out, or you’re going to blow something up with horrendous consequences because this time you’re really serious and nobody thinks you are.”
He added, “We’ve got a mess that they are going to have to clean up somehow.”
Calling for a special legislative session, Gov. Pat Quinn said today that lawmakers must approve spending for capital projects or construction could begin to shut down as early as next week.
“[The capital bill] was the largest investment in the history of Illinois in our roads, our highways, our bridges, our schools, our water systems, our rail systems, our broadband deployment. It was a huge public works agenda and project, and it’s the law of Illinois,” Quinn said as a Chicago news conference today. “Unfortunately the legislature went home last week without passing legislation to fund this year — this coming [fiscal] year beginning July 1 — the money necessary to pay for these projects.”
Lawmakers adjourned the regular legislative session last week without passing a bill that would approve the spending for construction projects for the next fiscal year. Senate Democrats tried to force a vote on about $430 million in spending that they wanted to tack onto the House’s budget proposal. Instead of voting on the measure, House Speaker Michael Madigan called for the creation of a conference committee, a group of members from both chambers and both parties tasked to hash out differences when the Senate and House cannot agree on a piece of legislation. Senate President John Cullerton did not follow suit, and the Senate wrapped up regular the spring session without putting its own members on a conference committee.
Now Quinn says lawmakers failed to get the job done, and he plans to meet with the four legislative leaders to “promptly” schedule a specially session to avoid what he called a “job crisis.” Quinn said that if the funding is not approved, he would have to start the process of shutting down construction projects on June 17. “This is something that has to be done. This is not a matter that’s optional. This is mandatory. These men [working on construction projects], they have to work. And they don’t want to be told on the 17th of this month that Springfield didn’t work for them and, ‘You’re off the job.’”
According to the Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association, a full shutdown would put 31,000 people out of work and cost the state about $30 million initially and $3 million a day for as long as work is called off.
Some House members say there is no need for the construction projects to be shut down so quickly. They maintain that an extension of the state’s lapse period, the time the state has after the close of the fiscal year to continue paying off bills from that fiscal year, would allow ongoing construction projects to continue. “We’ve sold bonds and the money is there. … The bond proceeds are there. The projects will continue,” Spring Valley Democratic Rep. Frank Mautino, a House Democratic budgeting point man, said on the last day of regular session.
He added that the extension of the lapse period from August through December would allow contractors on existing projects to continue submitting bills past the end of this fiscal year, and the state can continue paying for ongoing work. “So now, all those projects that are ongoing can just continue without a re-appropriation. … So we don’t need to do that bill.”
Steve Brown, spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan, echoed Mautino’s take on the issue. “The lapse period would allow the state to continue to pay bills and beyond that, we will continue to cooperate with the governor.” When asked if he thought lawmakers would return to the Statehouse next week, he repeated, “We’re cooperating with the governor.”
However, Kent Redfield, an emeritus political science professor at the University of Illinois Springfield, said that the House’s attempt to use lapse period spending to keep the capital projects going won’t fly. “You appropriate money for a certain period of time, and that’s the authorization to spend, and once that’s up that’s up. … You can’t engage in new spending after July 1 because it’s a new fiscal year, and you don’t have any statutory authority.”
Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka said she has asked her legal counsel to review the issue and determine how long she can continue to pay bills for capital projects. “My office will continue to pay state contractors for as long as legally possible, but ultimately, this question must be addressed by the General Assembly and governor. If that means calling an immediate special session, so be it. One thing is certain: Our families and businesses are already struggling and paying more than ever before to state government; they deserve better than to be subjected to a high-priced game of legislative chicken over the capital bill,” Topinka said in a written statement.
None of the legislative leaders would give specifics on when they might return for a special session. “It is our understanding that there is a bill in the Senate that would give the governor the authority to continue the capital program for the next fiscal year. We encourage the senators to pass that bill as soon as possible. Unfortunately, at the end of session last week, Senate Democrats tried to tack on an extra $400 million of extra spending, which was unacceptable in the House. We are always willing to discuss our options, but the clearest one at this point is for the Senate to pass [House Bill] 2189, without additional spending amendments, to the governor. This bill appropriates funds for the FY12 capital and road programs immediately. This important jobs creation bill should not be held hostage by additional requests for more spending in the budget,” Sarah Wojcicki, spokesperson for House Minority Leader Tom Cross, said in a written statement.
But Quinn today continued to back the Senate Democrats’ call for additional spending. “I think the General Assembly gets an incomplete when it comes to their budget. I don’t think they properly invested in important things like schools and other things that matter to everyday people.”
Redfield said, “[The issue at hand ] is obviously not the capital bill. It’s about the Senate Democrats and the governor wanting to appropriate additional dollars for education and human services.”
But adding more spending seems even less likely in a special session, when Republican votes would be needed to pass the appropriations for the capital bill. “They’ve already taken the tough votes. They’ve already voted to cut this stuff,” Redfield said.
He predicts there may be minor concessions on both sides, but that the dispute will instead likely be pushed off into the fall veto session, when there will likely be a clearer picture of how much money lawmakers have to work with. “This is a lot easier to play out in the fall, where you know where you are on gaming, and you know where you are in revenue.”
Quinn has yet to act on a large gaming package passed in the last days of the session that could potentially bring in billions of dollars in new revenue. While he supports a casino in Chicago, he has said that he thinks the bill, which calls for five new casinos and slots at horse racing tracks, may be too large of an expansion.
Quinn also lost a large potential bargaining chip when he signed off on the new legislative districts for state lawmakers last Friday. When asked about the move today, he told reporters, “This isn’t a matter to bargain.”
Redfield said the short time frame Quinn is giving could make it very hard for lawmakers to do more than pass a bill that extends capital spending into the fall and possibly take up the issue later. He said Quinn’s oft-repeated tactic of threatening to cut off a popular state program or service to spur the legislature to action does not have a track record of success. “That’s just a recipe for disaster. Either because you’re always kind of wimping out, or you’re going to blow something up with horrendous consequences because this time you’re really serious and nobody thinks you are.”
He added, “We’ve got a mess that they are going to have to clean up somehow.”
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