By Eric Stock
SPRINGFIELD – State money for veterans, the homeless and those who need addiction treatment has been on hold since the budget impasse began last summer.
Illinois House Democrats are now proposing $700 million to aid human services. House Deputy Majority Leader Lou Lang offers one warning.
PODCAST: Listen to Scott’s interview with Lang on WJBC.
“We have to make sure it actually passes through to those who are providing services to the needy, to the poor to those with mental health issues, etc.,” Lang said. “We don’t want that money used for state operations We want it to go directly to services, to people and we have to make sure that happens.”
The plan would take $450 million from a fund dedicated to human services and an additional $250 million from other funds.
Democratic leaders call the measure a stop-gap bill as lawmakers and Gov. Bruce Rauner have been unable to pass a budget for the fiscal year which started on July 1. The proposal would cover nearly half of what human service agencies had expected to receive for the full budget year.
School funding
The proposed school funding overhaul that’s making its way through Springfield will likely need to major changes if it has any chances of passing, according to Lang.
“There are a lot of people in the House that say ‘We are simply not going to take certain schools, let’s say suburban Chicago schools and take their property tax base away and send it downstate,’ ” Lang said.
Lang said shifting money won’t do any good without new revenue. He said there’s no point to making every school ‘average.’
Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].
