Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker wants federal stimulus to help states fight coronavirus
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Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Wednesday called on the federal government to approve another economic stimulus bill to support state governments during the coronavirus pandemic.
President Donald Trump last month signed a bipartisan bill for a $2 trillion boost to the economy as businesses across the country are struggling and COVID-19 has claimed thousands of lives.
But Pritzker said during his daily news conference Wednesday in Chicago that Illinois faces an estimated $2.7 billion reduction in revenues in the fiscal year that ends this summer and a $4.6 billion reduction in the next fiscal year.
Pritzker said the state plans to borrow $1.2 billion to support the state’s budget. With this move, the state’s total shortfall on the fiscal year 2021 budget is estimated to be $6.2 billion, Pritzker said.
Also, Pritzker said the shortfall would increase to $7.4 billion if voters in November do not pass the constitutional amendment for the proposed progressive income tax. The state currently has a flat rate of 4.95%.
“Folks, you don’t have to be an epidemiologist to see that the virus is going to hit our budget hard,” Pritzker said.
The governor’s news release stated “COVID-19 has had a profound impact on the U.S. economy, leading to an unexpected loss of revenues across all 50 states, with early projections showing combined state budget deficits of $500 billion over the next two years.”
Coronavirus relief bill
The $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES, ACT approved last month has funding to help states pay for new expenditures related to coronavirus, Pritzker said.
“Currently, this funding cannot be used to make up for state government shortfalls that have been a result of coronavirus,” he said. “That leaves states to face this unprecedented financial hole on their own if the Congress doesn’t pass a CARES Act Two to support state governments.”
Pritzker noted that the first CARES Act included the following:
▪ More than $9 billion for Illinois governments for a variety of programs for education, aid for seniors, child nutrition and transit systems.
▪ $150 billion in direct aid for COVID-19 related expenditures to the states, of which Illinois is expected to receive $4.9 billion – at least $2.7 billion to the state of Illinois directly and up to $2.2 billion to larger local governments.
“We will need to make extraordinarily difficult decisions on top of the difficult decisions we’ve already made, but together with the state legislature we will make them and we will do so with an unswerving dedication to fairness,” Pritzker said in a news release on Wednesday. “In the midst of a pandemic, I am more resolute than ever to protect those who are suffering physical and financial hardship from it.”
The number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 now stands at 948 in the state, the Illinois Department of Public Health announced Wednesday. That was up 80 from the number released on Tuesday.
As of Wednesday, there were 24,593 positive coronavirus cases in Illinois, up 1,346 from the previous day.
Pritzker has been asked about whether the remainder of the school year will be canceled but did not announce a decision Wednesday on this issue. He said earlier this week he is reviewing the data each day.
The state’s stay-at-home order and the order to close all public and private schools remain in effect until April 30. Large gatherings are prohibited, bars have been closed and dine-in services by restaurants have been shut down as part of the effort to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
The order to close schools first went into effect on March 17 and Pritzker later extended the order until April 30.
This story was originally published April 15, 2020 at 3:29 PM.
