SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Governor J.B. Pritzker, D-Illinois, will deliver his first State of the Budget Address at 12 p.m. Wednesday.
Pritzker is inheriting a financial mess that spans over several years. Currently, Illinois’ deficit sits at $3.2 billion.
Under former Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, Illinois went 793 days without a budget, causing a financial crisis for the state.
That stalemate lasted from July 1, 2015 until August 31, 2017. The effects of the budget impasse are still being felt.
Prizker will lay out his plans on how to generate revenue for the state. Some of the ideas he’s considering are legalizing marijuana, legalizing sports betting, and hiking taxes on e-cigarettes and vaping products.
It’s unknown just how much money that would actually generate for the state, though.
Pritkzer also wants to pump $375 million more into school funding.
The other issue Illinois has to figure out, is how to pay out state pensions. The pension liability currently sits at $133.5 billion.