Recent complaints from a state Democrat that Illinois’ lawmakers should get paid despite its statewide financial crisis are proof that current legislators are putting themselves ahead of their constituents, according to several GOP candidates.
Mel Thillens, Republican candidate for Senate District 28, recently expressed frustration at the lack of stability faced by Illinois in the absence of a state budget and its perceived irrelevance for current legislators.
In the wake of complaints from state Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D-Dist. 4), who grumbled last month about lawmakers’ paychecks being delayed, Thillens responded that she and her colleagues clearly missed the larger picture.
“Sen. Lightford (and) most of the legislators in Illinois obviously have little concept of the job they were sent to do,” Thillens said. “Passing a budget is priority No. 1, and they still haven't done it.”
The state has been functioning without a budget for a year, with approximately $8 billion in outstanding bills owed to state social services providers and firms doing business with Illinois.
The House sent an unbalanced budget to the Senate, which was voted down on May 31. The Senate presented its own education funding bill, which was turned down by the House.
The state constitution requires a balanced budget at the beginning of the fiscal year on July 1. At this point, only bills being paid by the state of Illinois are those mandated by court orders.
Lightford stated in June that for lawmakers’ income “to be held for months and months and months” is wrong and that they should be paid for their work. “We’re not vendors," she said on the Senate floor. "We deserve to get paid."
But the question everyone seems to be asking in retort is: Are you guys actually working in Springfield? Thillens countered that the representatives and senators currently occupying seats in Springfield do not deserve to put themselves ahead of ordinary citizens.
“Why should they get paid while the working men and women … trusting enough to take a state contract wait in line?” he asked. “Why should senators get paid while those who serve the … needy and the disabled wait in line?”
Echoing the sentiments of many others in his party, Thillens averred that something must be done to spur action, with more accountability initiated.
“I know senators aren't used to waiting in line, but they created this mess,” he said. “Line jumping is not permitted.”
Alerts Sign-up