Five days of special session have cost Illinois taxpayers an additional $250,000 for less than 90 minutes of work.

Four days of special session have cost Illinois taxpayers an additional $200,000 for less than 80 minutes of work.

Rank-and-file lawmakers have received paychecks of more than $50,800.

The Taxpayer Bargain finally shifts the budget conversation in favor of taxpayers over politicians, with a plan that balances the state budget without tax hikes.

Illinois state government works to prioritize special interests over taxpayers – and the budget deal being negotiated in the Senate would continue that.

The Senate’s “grand bargain” contains a one-year spending “cap” that won’t improve fiscal responsibility. A real cap must come with structural spending reforms to return spending to a level that taxpayers can afford.

Gov. Bruce Rauner has suggested funding CPS with tax increment financing, or TIF, funds; this would temporarily bail out the district, but more needs to be done to address serious concerns about Chicago’s TIF program.