"Responsible Budget Coalition Calls For 'Leadership, Not Politics'"-Progress Illinois
Escrito por Adam Doster | 19 mayo 2010
Leaders from the Responsible Budget Coalition reminded lawmakers yesterday that citizens are not satisfied with the stop-gap budget proposals that are being discussed in Springfield.
The budget that passed the Illinois State Senate in early May is pretty ugly. It relies way too heavily on borrowing, fails to pay the state's enormous backlog of bills owed to providers (which will grow to $6 billion by the end of the fiscal year), and leaves in place the state's unfair and inefficient tax structure.
Leaders from the Responsible Budget Coalition (RBC), which staged the largest statehouse rally in decades last month in support of an income tax increase, want to remind lawmakers that citizens aren't satisfied with the stop-gap budget proposals that are being discussed. In eight cities across Illinois, labor union officials, service providers, and teachers aligned with the RBC held press conferences to express a unified message: end the political games in the capitol and pass a responsible budget. Here's some footage from the Chicago rally.
Like so many community organizations, Erie Neighborhood House won't be able to operate much longer unless the state gets its act together. The Humboldt Park-based educational provider is currently owed approximately $800,000, which could force staffers to shut down its Head Start and early education offerings. For many of the low-income residents they serve, Executive Director Celena Roldan reminded reporters that Erie is the only realistic educational option available. "We need to tell the state that they cannot make our children and families their Plan B," she said. Watch it:
With lawmakers preparing to continue negotiations early next week, coalition members like the Heartland Alliance are urging voters to contact their lawmakers before Friday to demand "a responsible, comprehensive solution."
