Rock Island Today

The General Assembly needs to pass a balanced budget but also must address other underlying issues to prevent the last three years from every recurring, Rep. Brian Stewart (R-Freeport) argued on his website recently.

“This week, Governor Rauner has called for a special session with the stated goal of resolving the budget issue once and for all,” Stewart wrote. “I wholeheartedly support the governor’s decision and look forward to hopefully addressing the most pressing issue our state currently faces.”

But Stewart maintained that there's a need to do much more.

Rep. Brian Stewart (R-Freeport) | http://www.repbrianstewart.com/p/about.html

“There are some serious systemic issues that need to be addressed so that we can prevent this mess from ever happening again,” Stewart wrote. “We need to end our penchant for spend-happy legislation, and we need to focus on paying the state’s unpaid bills before we go off thinking of more 'good ideas.'”

In special session, any budget agreement will now require the approval of three-fifths of the houses rather than a simple majority. The session must end by June 30, the end of the current fiscal year.