Until CPS passes necessary spending and pension reforms, giving any additional money to the system will only reward officials’ mismanagement and reckless behavior.

The pension problem was created and has been fueled by weak politicians – men and women who decided their next elections were more important than the next generation.

Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan’s insistence that Chicago Public Schools receive more than its fair share of state education funding is putting any stopgap budget deal at risk.

A representative from the state-worker union called for collective action from governments of prison towns to force Gov. Bruce Rauner’s hand in the budget debate, which could expose thousands of incarcerated Illinoisans to squalid, dangerous conditions.

If Springfield politicians do not pass a budget by June 30, the state will be forced to stop payments to winning lottery ticket holders, Illinois’ comptroller has warned.

Madigan’s record $40 billion spending proposal and its $7 billion deficit revealed he was never serious about reaching a budget deal with Rauner. Instead it was nothing more than an attempt to create a deeper fiscal crisis, force additional tax hikes and create a bailout for the city of Chicago. As long as Madigan and other lawmakers keep prioritizing politics over people, Illinois will continue its downward spiral.