(The Center Square) – The Pritzker administration is working to justify to Illinois legislators the proposed $52.7 billion budget and Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s ability to transfer funds unilaterally.
During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing in Springfield Wednesday, state Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, said historically, governors have had a 2% transfer power, but then it increased to 4% and now it’s up to 8%. Rose said it makes it hard to see where taxpayer money is going. Rose specifically pointed out that last fiscal year, $1.2 million went to the new agency, The Governor’s Office of New Americans.
“It’s $1.2 million, which certainly isn’t a billion but we all know it adds up. It’s $1.2 million that we don’t know where it’s being spent,” said Rose. “People deserve to know where it’s going … and this 8% discretionary authority, it makes it very hard to track where all this is going.”
Alexis Sturm,
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