$1.3B proposed cuts to education
Gov. Pat Quinn proposed cutting $1.3 billion from education in an effort to offset the $13 billion Illinois debt in the budget address Wednesday.
While Quinn spoke about being optimistic, the realistic cuts would reduce state funding by 17 percent to elementary and high schools statewide.
“I am making this cut with the greatest of reluctance and only because our current fiscal emergency leaves me no choice,” Quinn said.
President Bill Perry said a cut for higher education was expected, but the plan is to continue to budget conservatively.
“In other words, the measures we put in this year to deal with the cash flow issue will also help us manage next year,” Perry said.
However, most of the education cuts will affect elementary and secondary education; funding for Eastern in the recommended budget would increase by 4.4 percent.
During the 21-minute speech, Gov. Quinn outlined his five-part plan to reduce the state deficit, which included cutting spending, using strategic borrowing, maximizing the used of federal funds, creating jobs and improving state revenues.
Sen. Dale Righter (R-Mattoon) said in a press release that poor planning for the loss of federal funding has lent to the situation.
“The governor and democratic leadership have used federal stimulus money as a way to increase expenditures for education,” Righter said. “Those funds were temporary.
Illinois schools are now in a critical situation in part because there wasn’t a plan to replace those funds.”
To offset the cuts in education, Gov. Quinn proposed a one percent income tax surcharge for education.
Quinn asked lawmakers to raise the tax rate to 4 percent, up from 3 percent currently. That would generate $2.8 billion a year, the same amount he sought unsuccessfully last year. His staff said the money would go solely to prevent education cuts and to make overdue payments to Illinois schools.
James Bruehler, a member of the economics department, said, “It isn’t a good way to ensure that it does.”
Bruehler said that it is a promise that cannot be audited and cannot be verified.
Emily Steele can be reached at 581-7942 or easteele2@eiu.edu
The AP contributed to this report.
$1.3B proposed cuts to education
Now that the Eastern basketball seasons have come to abrupt ends, and indoor track and field took care of business per usual, it’s time to delve into the glorious spring sports season.
