Budget Solutions 2011: Myth vs. Fact
This document is a follow up on Budget Solutions 2011, a line-by-line alternate budget proposal from the Illinois Policy Institute.
Illinois is in rough shape. The state faces $6 billion in unpaid bills, and the unemployment rate is over 11 percent—the highest in 27 years. The state’s bond rating is the second lowest in the nation. Pension plans for public employees are woefully underfunded, with a liability of over $80 billion.
In the face of a record budget deficit, Governor Quinn has proposed increasing top line spending by $3 billion, raising income taxes by 33 percent, and pursuing billions in new borrowing. This is unsustainable and shortchanges future generations.
The Illinois Policy Institute’s Budget Solutions 2011 offers an alternative spending blueprint that addresses our state’s immediate problems rather than kicking the can further down the road.
This brief offers the facts about Budget Solutions 2011 and its recommendations.
