Today, Comptroller Susana Mendoza announced the full repayment of all short-term borrowing made to help the state recover from Bruce Rauner’s infamous two-year budget impasse. The move also officially retires the “bill backlog” that reached a staggering $16.7 billion during Rauner’s disastrous tenure, as the state is now paying its bills within a normal 30-day timeframe.
Comptroller Mendoza, Gov. JB Pritzker, Treasurer Michael Frerichs, and Democrats in the General Assembly have consistently made sound fiscal decisions to help Illinois recover from the catastrophic Rauner years. From passing balanced budgets to paying back borrowing early to receiving the state’s first credit upgrade in two decades, Democrats are leading the way in getting Illinois’ finances back on track — and saving taxpayers tens of millions of dollars in the process.
Unfortunately, Illinois Republicans and Ken Griffin are proposing to take us backwards with the Rauner Reboot, a slate of statewide candidates using the Rauner playbook to try and take Illinois back to the days of bill backlogs, credit downgrades, and governmental chaos.
After all the progress our state has made under Democratic leadership, Illinois voters have no appetite to go backwards — we simply cannot afford it.
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