Governor Pat Quinn has laid out his plan for the new state budget… with a healthy dose of finger-pointing at the General Assembly.
Quinn says lawmakers are to blame for what he calls the most difficult budget of his time as governor, because they have failed to send him a comprehensive pension reform plan. Quinn says he would make changes through executive order if he could… but says he can’t do anything unless the legislature passes a bill.
Quinn and lawmakers will also be at odds over the size of the budget. The governor based his spending plan on revenues of $35.6 billion, but the legislature is operating on a revenue estimate that’s nearly $600 million less. [The governor's speech was heard live Wednesday on 970 WMAY.]
