Senate Week in Review: June 20 - 24
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ Lawmakers returned to Springfield June 22 to end the stand-off that left capital road construction funds in limbo. State Sen. Dave Luechtefeld (R-Okawville) said that passage of the "clean" capital bill will ensure road construction and other projects will continue without interruption.
Senate Democrats created a high-stakes game of "chicken" when they added more than $430 million to a budget bill containing the state's capital program spending. The capital program appropriation came to an abrupt halt when House lawmakers of both parties refused to concede to the Senate Democrats' pricey demands.
The maneuver drew even more criticism when Gov. Pat Quinn announced that unless the necessary capital appropriations were approved, he lacked authority to finance the state's road construction projects. Faced with opposition from House Democrats, Republicans in both chambers, and even the Governor, Senate Democrats relented and allowed a "clean" capital construction bill to pass.
Senate Bill 2414 contains the new appropriations for all annual pay-as-you-go capital (roads, transit, natural resources, outdoor recreation, drinking water, wastewater, etc). It also contains reappropriations that have not yet been spent from the FY10 Multi-Year Capital Plan that was passed by the General Assembly in May 2009.
The measure totals $28.1 billion and includes $3.0 billion in new appropriations (pay-as-you-go) and $25.1 billion in reappropriations. Senate Bill 2414 does not contain any expansion of the of the $31 billion multi-year capital plan, which was requested by Gov. Quinn in his introduced budget.
In other news, lawmakers made cuts to their salary, lodging and travel reimbursements. Senate Bill 266 was passed to require lawmakers to take 12 furlough days in the upcoming Fiscal Year 2012. They will also receive less in reimbursements for their travel, lodging and meal costs.
Finally, legislators approved Senate Bill 1633, which allows the state to make a $1.3 billion payment on Medicaid bills by June 30. This will garner the state an extra $70-$75 million in enhanced federal match dollars. The measure allows the state to take advantage of available federal funds without any additional borrowing.