Rep. Tony McCombie (R-Savanna) wants to see lawmakers in Springfield be willing to put the welfare of the state ahead of their own political aspirations.
“I think the campaigning should come second to what we need to do in Springfield and that’s to balance the budget,” McCombie said during a recent appearance on “Kelly Bowles for the Record.” "We have to keep concentrating on who’s going to get elected and do what we're elected to do including Gov. (Bruce) Rauner.”
With all that’s plaguing the state, from rising taxes to worker's compensation issues to spiraling out-migration, McCombie hinted the state is in crisis mode and in need of real leadership.
Rep. Tony McCombie
“We need to come up with structural reforms, especially on workman’s compensation,” she said. “Growth is the answer in Illinois.”
And yet, recent U.S. Census Bureau data show Illinois lost more than 33,000 people to out-migration in 2017, marking the fourth straight year the state has experienced such a decline.
The steady exodus has reportedly now dropped the state from the list of the United States' five most populous states, with the Census Bureau recently reporting it was overtaken by Pennsylvania.
“Competing with states like Iowa, we lose folks to simple things,” McCombie said.
She later added factors such as Rauner signing into law bills like abortion expansion bill HB 40 have also played a role. The law paves the way for Illinois residents on Medicaid or those working for the state to receive free abortions for any reason.
“I think this is an issue that is going to be constant,” McCombie told Bowles. “I am pro-life, and I voted against HB 40, but I think it is an issue that is always going to come back regardless of rather the law is in place or not.”
With Rauner scheduled to give his State of the State address on Jan. 31 and his budget address two weeks later, the governor recently warned spending cuts are almost guaranteed to be part of the plan.
Rauner’s eagerness to put a budget in place is heightened by some of the constant criticisms he has faced over the state previously being forced to operate for more than two years without a balanced plan in place.
“I have proposed a balanced budget every year I’ve been governor,” he recently told the Belleville News-Democrat. “Unfortunately, Speaker (Mike) Madigan and the legislators he controls have ignored my recommendations on a budget and have passed unbalanced budgets every year, just as they have prior to me becoming governor.”
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