| State of Illinois Budget |
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Our state budget is in a shambles. Fiscal year 2009 ended with a $4 billion dollar budget deficit. As a former accountant for small businesses and a small business owner myself, I know the state cannot continue its reckless spending, and must find ways to cut costs. As individuals, we know we can’t spend more than we earn or we quickly find ourselves deep in debt. Just because the state’s household budget carries a few more zeroes than yours or mine doesn’t mean it can escape basic math: you don’t spend more than you earn. The state must stop using taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars as a form of easy credit to finance its carefree spending. It’s not going to be easy, but we must go through the budget line by line and identify areas where reductions can be made. One potential item: Reduce the amount of land/office space the state owns or leases. I frequently find myself in the Loop’s Thompson Center on official business and the number of obviously vacant desks and offices is staggering. If the state doesn’t need such a big ‘house’ any longer, then it’s time to find renters or downsize and or sell unneeded property. It’s basic math, and it’s time to get down to basics. |
