Funeral directors say the current stalemate over Illinois' budget has meant more stress for low-income families who have lost loved ones.
Suspension of the state's funeral and burial assistance program means more low-income families cremate their dead or hold more meager funerals. According to funeral officials, more families of indigent individuals are also leaving their loved ones' remains unclaimed at county morgues.
The Illinois Department of Human Services says roughly 6,600 families were served by the assistance program in 2014. The program had cost the state between $6.4 million to $9 million annually.
Republican Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner and legislative Democrats are still at an impasse over a state budget for the fiscal year that started in July.
