The new $53.1 billion Illinois state budget includes new education funding and eliminating the grocery tax, but they garnered little Republican support, with one lawmaker slamming it because of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s (D) “dream of being president.”
While debating the budget bills on the Senate floor over the weekend, Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) argued against their passage on the grounds that Pritzker is going to run for president in the future.
“At the end of the day, folks, this is all about Governor Pritzker’s dream of being President of the United States,” Rose said last Sunday.
Rose’s office did not respond to a request to comment on how Pritzker’s hypothetical future presidential bid pertains to the Illinois budget this year. The lawmaker has served in the Illinois state legislature since 2003, and he currently serves as the state’s lead budgeteer. Rose and the other 18 Republicans in the state Senate voted against the budget.
Anne Caprara, Pritzker’s chief of staff, responded to the criticism by calling it sarcastically referring to the state GOP’s recent losses in elections.
I’m sorry. The GOP message is that @GovPritzker & the GA are passing their 6th balanced budget that funds progressive priorities (ie things that help people) & that is earning him a national profile? It’s this kind of crack messaging that has won them so many recent elections. https://t.co/wJJzV0U5pT
— Anne Caprara (@anacaprana) May 27, 2024
Among other criticisms were outcries about too much spending, which Republicans have routinely espoused on the local and national levels to oppose meaningful legislation.
The new budget reportedly includes $350 million of increased funding for schools in Illinois while also establishing the Early Childhood Agency. The state’s 1% grocery tax will also be eliminated, and a child tax credit will be added. After the Illinois House of Representatives passed the budget early Wednesday morning, Pritzker held a press conference to highlight the new budget that will begin on July 1.
“One of the challenges facing families across America has been affordability, especially for those trying to raise a family,” Pritzker said. “Rising prices have hit working families the hardest, so we focused on finding ways to reduce costs and put more money in their pockets. That’s why we eliminated the state sales tax on groceries and then created the first ever Illinois child tax credit, providing as much as $300 for working class and middle-class families.”
The new spending is supplemented by a $750 million tax hike for corporations, retailers and sportsbooks. The Illinois House passed the budget by a vote of 65-45, and it is expected to be signed by Pritzker in the coming days.
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May 29, 2024 at 04:08PM
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