SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Two DuPage County state senators – one Democrat and one Republican – will show their support for a constitutional amendment that would bring certainty and structure to the Illinois budget at a Springfield press conference this morning.

State Sens. Tom Cullerton, D-Villa Park, and Michael Connelly, R-Naperville, are bipartisan cosponsors of Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 21, an amendment that would tie growth in government spending to the growth in Illinois’ economy.

HJRCA 38 is partner legislation active in the Illinois House. Illinois Policy supports this legislation.

A spending cap would allow budget leaders to rely on a “magic number” to use as a baseline for budget conversations by ensuring the government can’t spend more than taxpayers can afford.

WHAT: Press conference in support of SJRCA 21 and HJRCA 38, both of which create a spending cap that would limit government spending growth to what taxpayers can afford, bringing certainty to Springfield’s often tumultuous budget discussions.

WHEN: 11 a.m. Thursday, April 26

WHERE: Blue Room (room 010), Illinois State Capitol, 401 S. 2nd Street, Springfield, IL 62707

EXPERT AVAILABLE: Adam Schuster, director of budget and tax research at the Illinois Policy Institute, is available on-site to comment on this commonsense reform.

BACKGROUND:

• A constitutional amendment requires three-fifths majority votes from both the House and Senate by May 6 to be put on the November ballot.
• Spending has consistently outpaced state tax revenues in Illinois for more than a decade. Illinois has not had a truly balanced budget since 2001.
• From 2005 to 2015, Illinois state spending grew 25 percent faster than taxpayers’ incomes.
• 26 other states have implemented some form of a state spending cap.

For bookings or interviews, contact Melanie Krakauer at media@illinoispolicy.org or (312) 607-4977