Capital bill waste shows need for reform

Illinois is often seen as the poster child when it comes to bloated government, wasteful spending and public corruption. As a recent WICS news story highlighted, Illinois’ capital bill is a perfect example of why the state holds such a reputation: the state budget is chock full of wasteful spending and pet projects. Take Decatur...

Illinois is often seen as the poster child when it comes to bloated government, wasteful spending and public corruption. As a recent WICS news story highlighted, Illinois’ capital bill is a perfect example of why the state holds such a reputation: the state budget is chock full of wasteful spending and pet projects.

Take Decatur and Springfield, for example. The capital bill includes:

• $955,000 to purchase and restore the Tinsley Dry Goods gift shop near the Lincoln-Herndon Law Offices in Springfield
• $2.1 million for the Decatur Metropolitan Exposition, Auditorium and Office Building Authority.
• $240,000 to Decatur Memorial Hospital for a pedestrian corridor
• Thousands going to the cities of Decatur and Springfield for general infrastructure improvements

While some of these projects may have merit, they’re not a priority when it comes to core government services. It’s unfair to prioritize pet projects and wasteful spending while funding for education and services for the poor and disadvantaged are on the chopping block.

Illinois lawmakers passed a record income-tax hike in 2011 – which is on track to raise more than $31 billion in new revenue by the end of the current budget year.  Yet Illinois government keeps crying poor and using taxpayers as piggy banks.

Need proof?

Look no further than the three massive tax hike attempts pushed by lawmakers this year – a progressive income tax hike, a millionaires tax hike and making the temporary 2011 tax hike permanent. Each of these were blatant attempts by politicians to paper over the need to reform government spending by taking more money out of the paychecks of hardworking Illinoisans.

Illinois politicians don’t know how to set priorities. The money they are wasting is real, the lost economic activity is real and the families in Illinois struggling to keep up with the state’s ever-increasing taxes are real.

It’s unfair for Illinois politicians to prioritize pet projects and wasteful spending over the struggling families and businesses that call Illinois home.