Governor Pat Quinn’s administration is promoting a plan for Medicaid health maintenance organizations (HMOs) as a major reform initiative, but several legislators have introduced bills in the General Assembly that would slow or restrict the plan. The pilot program would enroll roughly 40,000 disabled and elderly Medicaid recipients in Northeastern Illinois—excluding Chicago—in HMOs. The plan would mark the first time that HMO enrollment has been mandatory for Medicaid recipients in the State of…
As part of an agreement with legislative leaders to push back the Governor’s annual budget address from February 17, 2010 until March 10, 2010, the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget posted preliminary FY2011 budget information to a new state website last week. In an introductory video on the website, Director David Vaught explains the fiscal crisis facing the State and the tough choices ahead for the Governor and General Assembly. In the video, Mr. Vaught explains that the…
The State of Illinois’ underfunding of its retirement systems is a growing source of pressure on the State’s operating budget and an increasing focus of national attention. In a recent report by the Pew Center on the States, Illinois was found to be in the worst shape of any state with regard to the funding of its pension systems. The financial information in the Pew report was based on data from June 30, 2008. As part of the recently released Fiscal Rehabilitation Plan for the State of…
An Analysis of the State’s Fiscal Crisis and Actionable Recommendations for Governor Pat Quinn and the Illinois General Assembly Please visit the Illinois Fiscal Rehabilitation Plan web page for a comprehensive look at the report. This report describes the basis of the State of Illinois’ fiscal crisis and presents the Civic Federation’s plan for rehabilitating the State’s finances. The plan proposes measures to substantially reduce the current budget deficit in FY2011 and to place the State…
Proposes Comprehensive Package to Address State Budget Crisis Please visit the Illinois Fiscal Rehabilitation Plan web page for a comprehensive look at the report. CHICAGO – The Civic Federation, a 116 year-old government research organization, released today its plan to salvage the State of Illinois’ finances. “A Fiscal Rehabilitation Plan for the State of Illinois” calls for a comprehensive package of budget cuts, pension reforms, and revenue increases to put Illinois on solid financial…
One of the Chicago Transit Authority’s ongoing fiscal challenges has been balancing the cost of providing rides on the CTA with the fares the Authority collects from its customers. CTA Board Chairman Terry Peterson announced at the Authority’s February board meeting that it costs the Authority approximately $7 to provide a ride on the system while the estimated average fare per trip in FY2009 was $0.97.[1] Between FY2006 and FY2009, the average fare collected per trip has increased 4…
The State’s fiscal crisis is causing substantial difficulties for residents, state workers, state service providers and other governments. Budget cuts in early FY2010, which began July 1, led to reductions in state-funded services for some of Illinois’ lowest income citizens. Now, with the economy still mired in recession, the State is increasingly hard-pressed to pay its bills. Illinois’ backlog of unpaid bills has risen to unprecedented levels and the lag time in paying bills has nearly…
This article discusses the Institute for Illinois’ Fiscal Sustainability at the Civic Federation’s finding that the Illinois two-year budget deficit will reach at least $12.8 billion by the end of FY2010 as a result of the loss of tax revenue and structural deficits.
This article is about the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority’s plans to restructure its debt because of declining tourist revenue. The Civic Federation says that the State of Illinois should look closely at the Authority’s plans because they have the potential of increase the State’s debt obligations.
In this blog post, Crain’s Chicago Business columnist Greg Hinz examines the findings of an analysis conducted by the Civic Federation’s Institute for Illinois’ Fiscal Sustainability’s of the FY2010 enacted State of Illinois budget, focusing on the projected two-year budget deficit of $12.8 billion.
