Metro-east legislators say they're glad to see the $31 billion in projects approved this week by Gov. Pat Quinn, even though the General Assembly can't come up with an operating budget.
Projects for the metro-east in the capital bill signed Monday by the governor include a new science building at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, an Illinois State Police forensics lab in Belleville and numerous road improvements.
The projects will be paid for, over time, with increased fees and higher taxes on video gaming and gambling. The state also will use federal grants.
But for weeks, the legislature has been unable to come up with an operating budget. The governor has warned that because of a budget shortfall of about $10 billion, social services will be cut severely and prisoners will be released unless the legislature approves an increase in the income tax.
Sen. Dave Luechtefeld, R-Okawville, sees how residents might have questions.
"I've had people call me and say, 'Why don't you have money to do certain things, but you have money to build stuff,'" he said. "We created a revenue stream, and that revenue stream will hopefully be enough to cover a construction program. That construction program will do a lot of things that we really need done for this state, in infrastructure."
Luechtefeld said the infrastucture plan and the operating budget are totally different things.
"It's a revenue stream that is created for infrastucture. It raises about a billion dollars a year. A billion a year doesn't come close to fixing our budget problem."
Rep. Tom Holbrook, D-Belleville, said the state will get about $20 billion in federal grants for the projects.
"For every dollar we're spending, we're getting two back," Holbrook said.
Holbrook added that the projects are on "a specific list of infrastucture needs that were long overdue."
The infrastucture plan is Illinois' first since former Gov. George Ryan's Illinois FIRST program more than 10 years ago.
Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Collinsville, said the plan will help the state's economy.
"I think in order to begin to balance the budget, you have to put people to work," Hoffman said. "When people are working, they're contributing to the revenues of the state, and if we're ever going to get out of the economic recession we're in, we have to create jobs and economic opportunity.
"I don't believe there's any better way to help grow ourselves out of the current economic crisis and help the state budget than putting people to work, and this certainly would do that. And Illinois then would be in a position, as we climb out of the current economic conditions, of having the roads, bridges and educational institutions in place so we can lead the nation in job growth in the future."
Legislators met in caucus Tuesday. Holbrook said he expects a resolution to the state's budget debate by the end of the week.
"We're addressing the social services issue now," he said. "That's why we're in Springfield."
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