Democratic leaders in the legislature and Gov. Bruce Rauner appear to be close to a deal to approve some funding for social service providers, higher education, capital construction and state operations. The proposal would also fund K-12 schools for all of next fiscal year. But the plan can’t erase the destruction caused by the state going for a year without a budget.
Chicago State University won’t have funds to operate by March 1 if state money is not released, officials there have said.
For some Illinois kids, the state’s budget impasse means going to prison instead of going home. That’s because the lack of a state spending plan is forcing a universally-renowned program to disappear.
The state budget impasse could put more young people out on the streets this winter.
Before he was governor, Rauner was a wealthy private equity investor known in some circles for his involvement in education; there's even a charter school named after him: Chicago's Rauner College Prep.
