Cuts Spending; Reforms Medicaid; Pays Bills 

CHICAGO ­- June 30, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today reduced the budget he received Friday from the General Assembly by $57 million. After a careful review of the budget bills, the Governor enacted a $33.7 billion balanced budget. This budget cuts discretionary spending by $1.4 billion from fiscal year 2012, pays $1.3 billion of old bills, closes and consolidates 57 facilities, and restructures the state's Medicaid program while preserving the state's vital services. Governor Quinn also cut his own office budget by nine percent.

"Cutting the budget is never easy but we must make the difficult decisions necessary to restore fiscal stability to Illinois," Governor Quinn said. "This budget is a serious fiscal plan that pays our bills, closes facilities and prevents the collapse of our Medicaid system."

Reductions

Overall, this budget reduces discretionary spending by approximately $1.4 billion from the previous fiscal year.  The fiscal year 2012 discretionary budget was $25.3 billion compared to $23.9 billion for fiscal year 2013. This budget reduces overall spending at agencies under the Governor's control, including a 9 percent reduction in the Governor's office.

Governor Quinn reduced the budget through the closures and consolidations of 57 state facilities in order to improve state government efficiency and the quality of life for people with developmental disabilities and mental health challenges.  These actions will save the state approximately $82 million in fiscal year 2013, and will result in an annualized savings of at least $136 million beginning in fiscal year 2014. Illinois can no longer afford outdated, half-full, very expensive facilities.

Department of Corrections

Reductions to the department will be achieved through the closures of Tamms Correctional Center, Dwight Correctional Center, Southern Illinois Adult Transition Center, Decatur Adult Transition Center and Westside Adult Transition Center.

Department of Juvenile Justice

Reductions to the department will be achieved through the closures of the Illinois Youth Center Murphysboro and Illinois Youth Center Joliet. 

Department of Human Services

Reductions to the department will be achieved through the closures of Tinley Park Mental Health Center, Singer Mental Health Center and Jacksonville Developmental Center (JDC).  The Department of Human Services will begin the process of closing Murray Developmental Center once the closure of JDC is complete.  The funding in these lines will be used to ensure smooth transitions and coordinated care as individuals move from costly institutions to supportive community settings.

Governor Quinn strongly objects to the General Assembly's cuts to education and the Department of Children and Family Services, which is dedicated to protecting and saving children from abuse and neglect.  The governor will seek to reallocate funding in the fall towards protecting children.

"Our priority should always be the safety and well-being of our children," Governor Quinn said.

For a more detailed explanation of reductions, please see attachments.

Pension  

Under Governor Quinn's leadership, the state of Illinois has made the statutorily required pension payment every year since 2009.  The fiscal year 2013 budget continues to fully fund the pension systems.

Without major changes to our pension systems, pension costs will continue to place a tremendous strain on Illinois' budget. In fiscal year 2008, the state's pension payments were $1.8 billion, and have since grown to $5.2 billion in fiscal year 2013. These rising costs continue to squeeze all other areas of state government including education, public safety and services relied on by some of the state's most vulnerable residents.

Governor Quinn laid out a pension plan to address these rising costs and eliminate the state's unfunded liability; however, any changes require legislative action. The Governor continues to work diligently with legislators on both sides of the aisle to solve Illinois' pension challenges that continue to impact taxpayers on a daily basis.

Reforms are also needed immediately in order to make certain the men and women who have faithfully contributed to the system receive their benefits. Governor Quinn is committed to making sure the pension systems are 100 percent funded by 2042 while saving taxpayer funds. The Governor is committed to continuing to work on the issue until pension reform is accomplished.

Today, Governor Pat Quinn took action on the following bills:

Approved

SB 2378    General Services appropriations

SB 2413    P-12 Education appropriations

SB 2443   Higher Education appropriations

SB 2454   Human Services appropriations

SB 3802   Budget Implementation Act

Line Item and Reduction Vetoed

SB 2474   Public Safety appropriations

Reduction Vetoed

SB 2409    General Services appropriations

Line Item Vetoed

SB 2332    Capital re-appropriations

The fiscal year 2013 budget takes effect July 1, 2012.

Law to Reduce Violence by Allowing Law Enforcement to Prosecute Gang Leaders for Crimes They Order

CHICAGO - June 11, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today signed a tough new law to fight gang crime and reduce violence in Illinois. The new law empowers law enforcement with the ability to prosecute street gang leaders for the criminal acts of their organizations. Joining the governor was Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and local lawmakers.

"One of the best ways to make our neighborhoods safer is to go after street gang leaders who profit from crime," Governor Quinn said. "Gang leaders cannot be allowed to escape justice by hiding behind criminals who do their bidding. This law will help law enforcement get gangs off the street and keep them off."

House Bill 1907, sponsored by Sen. Tony Munoz (D-Chicago) and Rep. Mike Zalewski (D-Chicago), is modeled off the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act that was designed to help law enforcement fight organized crime by treating criminal acts committed by members of the group as part of an ongoing criminal enterprise. Under this legislation, law enforcement in Illinois can more effectively target the street gang leaders who order and benefit from the crimes of lower-ranking members.

The Illinois Street Gang RICO was an initiative of Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez, who recently formed the office's first anti-racketeering unit to use the new law to build gang RICO cases involving multiple defendants with the goal of dismantling the street gang from the top down. The unit's specially-trained prosecutors will also work with other State's Attorney's Offices throughout Illinois on how to apply the law effectively.

"For the first time in the history of our state, this new law will give local prosecutors the tools to identify and address patterns in multiple gang-related offenses and join different organized crime offenses and different offenders into a single court proceeding," Alvarez said. "Prior to the signing of this bill, state prosecutors were typically only able to charge individual gang crimes and rarely, if ever, were able to prosecute and hold gang leaders accountable for the organized activities of the street gang and its rank-and-file members."

Under the new law, gang members convicted of criminal conspiracy under the new law could face more than 30 years in prison depending on the associated crimes, and fines of up to $250,000 or twice the gross amount of any criminal proceeds. Illinois joins 31 other states in having racketeering statutes.

According to the Chicago Police Department, Chicago has the largest gang population in the country, with approximately 100,000 members in hundreds of factions. 75-80% of the city's homicides are gang-related.

"On behalf of the children, families and neighbors of Chicago and across Illinois, I commend the Governor for signing HB1907 into law today, and I thank State Senator Tony Munoz and State Representative Mike Zalewski for their work on this bipartisan legislation and State's Attorney Anita Alvarez for her leadership on this issue," said Mayor Rahm Emanuel. "This law will give local law enforcement the power to prosecute gang leaders for crimes that they ordered others to commit and provide a critical tool to dismantle the structure of gangs that are targeting our neighborhoods."

"The Chicago Police Department is committed to making Chicago a safe place to live, work, and play for our residents and we will use all available resources, including the new RICO law, to ensure the safety of communities across the city of Chicago," said CPD Superintendent Garry F. McCarthy. "I commend Mayor Emanuel and Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez for their leadership, State Senator Tony Munoz and Representative Mike Zalewski for their sponsorship, and Governor Pat Quinn for his support of this critical legislation and look forward to the positive effect this action will have in Chicago."

"As a former law enforcement officer, I've seen firsthand how gangs are destroying our neighborhoods," said Sen. Tony Munoz. "The violence and the killing needs to stop for the good our children, our communities, and our city. This law sends a strong message to gangs that they can no longer dodge justice."

"Under this law, judges and juries will be able to see the big picture when it comes to looking at the full impact of gangs in Illinois," Rep. Mike Zalewski said. "Gangs that collectively benefit from crimes should not be able to escape criminal responsibility by letting junior members take the fall."

The law takes effect immediately.

SPRINGFIELD - May 24, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today released a statement regarding the Illinois General Assembly passing Senate Bill 2840, a key part of his proposal for Medicaid restructuring.

"I salute Speaker Michael Madigan, House Minority Leader Tom Cross, Senate President John Cullerton, Minority Leader Christine Radogno, Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, Rep. Patti Bellock, Sen. Heather Steans, Sen. Dale Righter, members of the General Assembly and everyone who joined the working group for making significant progress today towards rescuing our Medicaid system.

This is the first step toward saving Medicaid for those that rely upon it. The status quo would have led to Medicaid's collapse, and I am pleased to see the General Assembly take strong action to put our Medicaid system and our state on the path to sound fiscal footing.

And there is more work to do.

The General Assembly must move quickly to pass legislation to add a dollar a pack to the cost of cigarettes, which - combined with today's legislation - will achieve the necessary $2.7 billion in savings to rescue Medicaid.

Raising the price of cigarettes is also sound health policy; smoking-related conditions are a significant burden on our Medicaid system, and this measure will improve the health of our people and reduce future Medicaid costs. Members of the General Assembly should not delay in taking action to reduce our Medicaid burden and access dollar-for-dollar federal matching funds by increasing the price of cigarettes.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced that Illinois, Indiana and Michigan have agreed to move forward with a comprehensive study that will help determine ways to reduce rail congestion and let trains achieve higher speeds along the Chicago-to-Detroit high-speed rail corridor.

The goal of the study, which will be funded through a $3.2 million grant from the Federal Railroad Administration and $200,000 each from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Norfolk Southern, is to reduce passenger travel times between Chicago and Detroit and efficiently move freight through one of the nation's busiest freight rail networks, the congested Chicago to Porter, Ind., segment.

"This is an important step toward achieving higher speeds along the entire Chicago to Detroit rail corridor and improving the flow of freight to the east coast," said Secretary LaHood. "Eliminating bottlenecks will boost the economy by reducing delays and allow for the freer flow of both people and goods throughout the region."

An important focus of the study will be reducing congestion by linking a double track passenger main to the 110 mph service at Porter.  The study will build on progress Michigan has already made by achieving 110 mph service from Porter to Kalamazoo.

"The comprehensive study will help us establish faster passenger rail service for business and leisure travelers moving between Chicago and Detroit, as well as make freight movements more efficient," Illinois Governor Pat Quinn said.  "In Illinois, we have made high-speed rail and freight infrastructure improvement top priorities, and I am pleased to work with our neighboring states and Secretary LaHood, who understands the importance of providing significantly reduced travel times and promoting economic development through rail improvements."

"This is an important partnership in our efforts to reinvent Michigan, specifically creating an accelerated rail connection between Detroit and Chicago for both citizens and businesses," said Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder.    "Relieving congestion will also help the Midwest's freight industry by better enabling the rapid and efficient movement of manufactured and agricultural products."

The Chicago to Detroit line is part of the Midwest Regional Rail Network, which is located in one of five densely populated mega-regions, areas already overwhelmed by congestion and in need of better transportation options.  Bringing safe, fast, convenient, affordable high-speed rail to these areas will create jobs, increase economic opportunities and relieve congestion.

More than 100 million people call the Midwest region home, with the vast majority of residents living within 500 miles of the Chicago rail hub.  Using the Gross Domestic Product as a measure, the Great Lakes-Midwest economic region would be the fifth largest economy if it were its own country.

The Federal Railroad Administration and its 32 state partners are making great progress on High-Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail projects across the country.  With $10.1 billion in federal funding, they're moving forward with 153 projects, laying the foundation for a 21st century passenger rail network.