Many state lawmakers in Illinois are in campaign mode right now. And that means nothing is being done about the state budget. Lawmakers and the Governor agreed to a stop-gap spending measure at the end of June. It will keep state government services running until early January.
But it’s been nearly a year-and-a-half since the state had a true budget. Western Illinois University President Jack Thomas says the lack of a budget creates a great deal of uncertainty for state agencies and social service providers that rely on state funding. Despite that, Thomas says there seems to be no sense of urgency from lawmakers.
“Legislators, even in my testimonies, they say that they understand. But you don’t see any actions. So we’re going to continue to put the pressure on and encourage them.”
Thomas says it’s difficult for public universities to plan for the future without a state budget in place. And he says Western spent down its reserves during the state’s historic budget impasse so it cannot afford to go through another fiscal year like the last one.
Despite the uncertainty, Western hopes the state will finally come through. The board of trustees approved the school’s appropriated budget request.
Western is asking for nearly $136 million. That includes money to operate the campuses in Macomb and the Quad Cities. It also includes some money for pay raises and money to deal with a fraction of the school’s deferred maintenance.
The request now goes to the Illinois Board of Higher Education, which will send its recommendation to the legislature and Governor for consideration.
