The Illinois comptroller warns Illinois' backlog of unpaid bills will reach $10 billion by December.

Major ratings agencies have assigned a negative outlook to Illinois. To move forward, the state can’t pass just any budget – especially one that’s $7 billion out-of-whack – to get beyond its crisis. With today’s fiscal stress, a bad budget is worse than no budget. A budget without reforms will only allow Illinois’ debt to continue to spiral, putting investors – and more importantly, Illinois residents – at risk.

For years, Illinois lawmakers have prioritized government-worker pay and benefits over social services. Between 2000 and 2015, contributions to Illinois state-worker pension funds shot up 586 percent, while state payments for human services increased by only 10 percent.

Illinois' budgeting process is not fair to the people of Illinois.

The Illinois attorney general – House Speaker Mike Madigan’s daughter – could play a major role in whether state lawmakers will pass a budget Illinoisans can afford.