Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner

The state’s recently projected $23 billion in deficits over the next five years should come as a big surprise for Illinoisans given how well the Pritzker administration says it has managed the state’s finances in recent years. Illinois has “balanced its budgets,” “paid down its unpaid bills,” and “created a rainy day fund,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker has repeated often.

Despite all that, Illinois is right back to the multi-billion dollar deficits it had right before covid. A look at the state’s budget forecasts, done by the governor’s OMB, reveals why. Pritzker wants to continue the pandemic-era spending he’s put together since coming into office in 2019. If the governor has his way, the state’s budget will have grown by a whopping $23 billion by 2030 – a near 60% increase in little more than a decade.

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The Virginia teachers union sent this email to members after Trump won