More of the Same: The FY2019 General Fund Budget Fails to Address Illinois' Long-Term Structural Fiscal Issues
More of the Same: The FY2019 General Fund Budget Fails to Address Illinois' Long-Term Structural Fiscal Issues
RELEASED:
October 2, 2018
The FY2019 Illinois General Fund budget is the first budget agreed upon by both the General Assembly and the Governor in Illinois since FY2015. Among the highlights of the budget is that the state will, fo rthe second year ina row, increase funding for K-12 Education by at least $300 million over prior year levels, as required by teh new Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act. Despite the god news, hwoever, Illinois continues to underfund many crucial General Fund services--particularly Higher Education and Human Services--both of which have seen significant cuts in real, inflation-adjusted dollars since the turn of the century.
On the revenue side, the budget continues the longstanding and dubious tradition of relying on various gimmicks in an attempt to make the FY2019 budget appear balanced. Of even greater concern, however, is the budget's failure to address the accumulated General Fund deficit, which is projected to grow to $9.862 billion by teh end of FY2019, and does nothing to address the ever-increasing financial strain of the Pension Ramp.
