DALLAS -- Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a package of stopgap budget bills that fund state government through December and ensure kindergarten through 8th grade schools open on time.
Rauner signed the budget bills late Thursday after they passed with bipartisan support, by 105-4 in the House and 54-0 in the Senate.
"It is meant to keep the lights on," said House Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie of Chicago, the Democratic majority leader, in closing arguments during the Illinois House debate on the package.
"This is a budget that spends money without additional revenue," said Senator John Sullivan ,D-Rushville.
The plan follows two days of closed-door negotiations as lawmakers rushed to get a budget passed before the fiscal year begins on Friday. Lawmakers closed the regular spring session on May 31 without a balanced budget in place.
Under the plan, Illinois will provide $500 million more in public education state aid than it did last year.
An additional $250 million will be spent to help schools with low income students. Chicago Public Schools would get $100 million of that. The district, which has a $1.1 billion budget deficit, had faced a reduction of state aid under the current school funding formula.
The agreement also includes legislation to allow Chicago to raise $250 million in property taxes to help with teacher pension payments. A companion proposal will have the state cover $215 million in future pension costs beginning in June, as it does for all other Illinois school districts, but only if lawmakers pass legislation to reform the overall pension system.
Democrats initially wanted $700 million in pension help for CPS.
"Today the state of Illinois took some important steps to right some historic wrongs when it comes to education funding," said Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel at a press conference on Thursday. "In my view progress beat out partisan politics and the public came out ahead."
CPS is struggling with a more than $1 billion deficit and closed out the fiscal year Thursday with about an $80 million balance after making a $669 million teachers' pension payment Thursday, the district said.
CPS has yet to release a 2017 budget, and the school district hasn't said when the budget will be release.
The stopgap budget also includes $673 million for social services programs.
The bills also provide about $1 billion for colleges and universities – which represents about 85% of their aid appropriation.
In June Moody's downgraded Illinois' credit rating by one notch to Baa2. S&P Global Ratings lowered the state's ratings to BBB-plus from A-minus. Both assign negative outlooks. Fitch Ratings rate Illinois at BBB-plus and placed the credit on negative watch.
