Join the Coalition

Illinois Is Broke
Coalition Members

• The Civic Committee
• The Commercial Club of Chicago
• The Civic Federation
• Business Roundtable
• Catholic Charities
• Metropolitan Family Services
• Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce
• Target Area Development Corporation

The members of the Coalition for real budget reform agree:

• 1. Illinois is in the midst of a serious fiscal crisis. Our State’s budget is radically imbalanced; its costs significantly exceed revenues. We must have real balanced budgets in Illinois – rather than budgets based on continued borrowing.
  
  
• 2. At the core of the fiscal problem is the State’s retirement benefits system – pensions and retiree health care. They should be reformed. The recently-enacted pension reforms for future State hires are a step in the right direction, but do not go far enough. Other areas of the State’s budget must also be restructured to reduce costs and improve efficiency.
  
  
• 3. We favor more investment in Illinois, more companies moving to Illinois, more jobs for Illinois. We are for better schools, better health care, and a strong safety net for our citizens. But because of our enormous retirement-related obligations, high costs and unbalanced budgets, investment and jobs are leaving the State. The tax base is eroding. The retirement-related costs are crowding out other priorities. To reverse these trends, we have to fix our State’s finances.
  
  
• 4. Raising taxes without reforms and cuts is not the right answer. Major budget reform and cost reductions should be implemented before consideration is given to raising taxes.