This Budget May Be Pritzker's Toughest Challenge Yet
Governor JB Pritzker presents his sixth state budget Wednesday and it may be the most difficult challenge of his time in office.
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OPINION
Navigating the pandemic, the deaths of two dozen veterans in a state run home, losing a key constitutional amendment referendum, and overcoming a flow of asylum-seeking migrants into the state have peppered Governor JB Pritzker’s first five years in office.
On Wednesday, Pritzker presents his FY2025 budget proposal, which passing and implementing may present his toughest challenge to date.
Democrats rightly deserve credit for navigating the near economic crash of the pandemic, but, rightly, used billions in federal dollars sent directly to the state, billions more flooded into the economy, and higher than expected tax revenue to help balance the books.
But FY25 has left governing Democrats staring down the barrel of a budget deficit approaching a billion dollars. There’s a little potential leeway, as the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget (GOMB) have predicted a $1.4 billion surplus in the current fiscal year (and it’s not like they send the overrun back to us.)
But, it also isn’t clear if the Governor has been able to keep spending in check, including for the controversial Health Care for Immigrant Adults and Seniors, which provides Medicaid-style health care to illegal/undocumented immigrants.
Republicans will assuredly point at the undocumented health care program and funding for migrants in Chicago as places the state shouldn’t be spending money. They’ll also likely to continue to be shut out of all budget discussions by supermajority Democrats.
Keeping Democrats in line may be Pritzker’s toughest challenge.
More moderate Democrats want the state to hold the line on spending without expanding existing programs or introducing new ones.
“Living within our means, tightening our belts when we see that the horizon isn’t as rosy as it was in years passed,” fiscally moderate Democratic Comptroller Susana Mendoza said in a television interview this weekend. “That’s the formula to the success and it’s easy to continue as long as we stay fiscally disciplined.”
The faces that make the current crop of lawmakers in Springfield different than even five or ten years ago is the number of progressive Democrats that make up the House and Senate.
They’re not going to back off of their push for new spending and they want new taxes to pay for it.
“Tax the rich,” said progressive Sen. Rachel Ventura (D-Joliet). “Working families are not less deserving than the rich turning record profits.”
Legislative leaders are traditionally hesitant to raise taxes in an election year, especially with a number of suburban Democrats facing challenges in November.
Closing the gap, keeping progressive members happy, and funding their priorities could make this budget an incredibly tough haul for Pritzker, House Speaker Chris Welch, and Senate President Don Harmon.
We’ll see if they’re up to the task.
