Trying to fix a massive pension deficit with more tax increases, deferring payments and gambling with taxpayer money is a recipe for failure.

Illinois taxpayers are fed up and overtaxed. Residents have little faith that their governments are spending their tax dollars well – and for good reason. The state’s most recent spending plan is out of balance by as much as $1.5 billion, and includes $54.2 million in wasteful spending and $27 million in pork-barrel spending. The...

While borrowing to help pay down the state’s unpaid bill backlog will save money on interest payments and relieve pressure on those waiting for cash, it also perpetuates Illinois’ spending problem.

Like the “grand bargain,” the Brady plan and the Illinois Senate Democrats’ budget before it, the Illinois House Democrats’ plan relies on more than $5 billion in new tax revenues because it includes no significant structural spending reforms.