Quincy Reporter

Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy), in her week-in-review report, posted a link to a report from a nonprofit good-government group that says Illinois' state budget isn't sustainable since it relies on one-time federal funding.

“A warning by Senate Republicans in recent months that Illinois’ new budget is careless as it uses one-time COVID-19 revenues to increase long-term state spending is supported in a new report by an organization that promotes responsible government spending,” the week-in-review said.

In April, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the upcoming 2023 Fiscal Year budget for the state. It features a freeze on the motor fuel tax for six months, but the report from the Volcker Alliance says Illinois is facing a 'fiscal cliff.'

"Fiscal sustainability is especially important in the context of SLFRF (Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds), because the program provides appropriations that must be obligated (a term indicating a binding agreement for outlays) by December 31, 2024, and spent by December 31, 2026," the report said. "States that may be using these funds to finance recurring costs, including California, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, could encounter so-called fiscal cliffs when the federal money is no longer available.

Democratic lawmakers are more optimistic.

“This budget continues us down the path of financial surety, invests in critical resources like public safety and human services, and helps ease the burden of inflation for families with $1.8 billion in tax relief,” House Speaker Emanuel Welch (D-Westchester) said in a release. “This is what financial responsibility looks like, and fiscal watchdogs agree. I'm proud of the work that went into this budget and grateful to see Governor Pritzker sign it into law today.”

In May, Tracy joined Sen. Dave Syverson (R-Rockford) in calling for an alternative to the gas tax freeze. Syverson at the time called on the General Assembly and the Pritzker Administration to immediately take action to cap the state’s sales tax on motor fuel at 18 cents per gallon, which is more in line with what consumers were paying last fall before prices started to climb dramatically.

Syverson says the General Assembly should reconvene for a special session to repeal the Governor’s two-cent election-year plan and pass Senate Bill 4195, which, according to Syverson, "substantially saves and relieves motorists and prevents the state government from receiving a windfall of cash it was never expecting."

“Instead of providing consideration for SB 4195 this spring, Gov. Pritzker and Democrat legislators had something else in mind, however, and passed a law that will simply delay an automatic two-cent increase to the state’s Motor Fuel Tax until after the election in January 2023 instead of in July 2022,” Syverson said on his website.

As of June 1, AAA reported the average price for a gallon of gas is $4.671 nationally and $5.131 in Illinois.