Above / Comptroller puts elected leader pay on par with other obligations in Springfield.
Comptroller Leslie Geissler Munger on Sunday announced that compensation for Illinois’ General Assembly members and Constitutional Officers – herself included – will be treated the same as all other government payments and delayed due to the state’s $7.8 billion bill backlog.
Illinois is in its 10th month of operation without a budget in place, leaving the state to pay bills under a patchwork of Court Orders, Consent Decrees and statutory authorizations. As a result, the state is expected to dig $6.2 billion deeper in the hole this year, worsening its fiscal condition, exacerbating cash flow challenges and lengthening payment delays.
With families, social service organizations, schools and businesses waiting months on end for promised payments from the state, Munger said it is appropriate for elected leaders to face delays as well.
“Our social service network is being dismantled, mass layoffs are occurring and small businesses across Illinois are awaiting payments for services they’ve already provided,” Munger said. “As our cash crunch grows in the coming months, it is only appropriate that the unfair prioritization of payments to elected leaders ends. We are all in this together, we all will wait in line.”
Salaries of $1.3 Million monthly will be put on hold in a queue
Salaries for the state’s six Constitutional Officers and 177 General Assembly members total approximately $1.3 million a month, or $15.6 million annually. The elected leaders are customarily paid on the last day of the month. Munger noted that her office will still process the vouchers monthly, but the warrants will then wait in a queue with other payments before being released when cash is available.
State payments are currently delayed a minimum of two months, unless they are expedited due to severe hardship. That wait time is expected to grow in lower revenue months in the Summer and Fall.
“It is the right thing to do,” Munger said. “And if this action helps bring all sides together to pass a balanced budget and end this unnecessary and devastating hardship to our state, that is an added benefit.
“Illinois needs a balanced budget. It is well past time that we get it done.”
News from Office of the Illinois Comptroller, Leslie Geissler Munger
Comment from State Rep. Grant Wehrli (41st District)
“I agree with what Comptroller Munger is doing,” said Rep. Grant Wehrli (41st District) by phone on Sunday. “The short time I’ve been in Springfield, we’ve done very little but waste time.
“I call on the Governor and leaders of both parties in both chambers to resolve the budget impasse now; something I’ve been calling for for months.
“We should not let Springfield yet again go without a solution to the budget impasse. We must pass a balanced budget— that’s balanced budget—now because of all 13 million residents in the state Illinois and that, of course, includes the residents of Naperville.”
Wehrli noted the Illinois General Assembly, the Senate and the House, will be in session again on Mon., April 18, 2016.
Comment from State Senator Mike Connelly (21st District)
“We really are in this together,” said Sen. Mike Connelly (21st District), about an hour before he was headed back to Springfield.
The Senate will reconvene at 3PM on Mon., April 18.
“Businesses are struggling. Vendors who have done work for the state haven’t been paid. Social services are not being paid for services rendered,” Connelly added.
“So in the spirit that we’re all in this together, I applaud the Comptroller’s decision.
“Hopefully, this will coax the powers to be to get going toward a balanced budget and long-term sustainability.”
Update Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Comment from State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit (84th District)
“The budget crisis is the most important issue facing the State of Illinois today,” stated State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit (84th District) in an email on Tuesday. “I know that myself, along with many colleagues on both side of the aisle are working hard towards solutions that we can agree on. I appreciate the Comptroller’s focus on this important issue and I look forward to her joining me and call on the Governor and Leaders of both parties and chambers to work together to find a responsible solution to the fiscal crisis.
“This crisis has crippled our social services network, our University and Community College system, and our economy as a whole, and I am committed to continue working and offering suggestions to solve this crisis in a responsible way.”
Editor’s Note: We appreciate our elected officials’ comments and commitment to serve Naperville residents.
Sunday’s editorial in the Daily Herald (April 17, 2016) also features some thoughts on efficient operations and consolidation in Springfield. One idea proposed by State Rep. David McSweeney would be to eliminate the office of Lieutenant Governor. Editors also suggest combining the Treasurer and Comptroller Offices.
Since the Lieutenant Governor is elected along party lines with the Governor and if the position were eliminated, one consideration from where we sit would be that in the event of the Governor’s death or resignation in good standing, the successor would be from the Governor’s same party. Think about it. Talk about it. It’s time for sensible solutions and economies of saving whenever possible in this beautiful Midwestern state.
