Illinois To Borrow $2B To Cover Revenue Losses Amid Pandemic

ACROSS ILLINOIS — Illinois is set to request a $2 billion loan from the Federal Reserve to cover some of the debts it’s facing as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday.

State officials could have requested up to $5 billion in federal funding, but Pritzker said Illinois would struggle to repay a loan that large without creating serious fiscal problems.

“I am very reluctant to saddle our state with that large an amount of short-term debt,” Pritzker said. “I believe it would be irresponsible to borrow that entire amount given the persistent fiscal pain it would cause over the next three years.”

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Pritzker has long called for federal aid for state and local governments, which have lost out on billions of dollars in taxes and other revenue streams due to the pandemic. But he also said Illinois should not take advantage of federal aid to solve its structural problems.

“Let me be clear, while we will continue to take every step we can to manage our way through this crisis, adding debt is not a long-term solution to structural imbalance,” Pritzker said. “Short term borrowing is a short term Band-Aid to address the urgency of a short term problem like one caused by a pandemic.”

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In June, Illinois tapped the Federal Reserve’s Municipal Liquidity Facility lending program for $1.2 billion to cover pandemic-related revenue losses during the fourth quarter of the previous fiscal year (April 1-June 30).

The state has yet to pay back that loan, but officials will work to pay down the $3.2 billion in short-term borrowing “at the earliest date” possible, whether through federal stimulus funding or tax revenues once they recover, Pritzker said.

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Pritzker and Illinois Department of Public Health director Dr. Ezike made a final attempt Wednesday at convincing residents not to gather with people outside their immediate households for Thanksgiving.

Ezike said she fears there will be a new spike in coronavirus cases and related hospitalizations in about two weeks if people disregard public health guidelines and invite friends and family over for the holiday.

“We don't want anybody’s Thanksgiving dinner to turn in to a COVID-19 superspreader event,” Ezike said. ‘Our goal is to protect and not infect those that we love and care for.

“Please be a part of the solution and not part of the problem,” Ezike said.

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More than 11,300 new coronavirus cases were confirmed Wednesday, bringing Illinois' total to 685,467 cases.

Public health officials also confirmed 155 deaths from COVID-19 on Wednesday, taking the state's death toll to 11,832 confirmed. Nearly 500 additional deaths are listed as "probable" COVID-19 deaths.

More than 6,100 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 Tuesday night in Illinois, down about 0.6 percent from Monday. Public health data shows 1,208 people are in intensive care units and 679 are on ventilators.

IL Hopes To Receive 400K Coronavirus Vaccine Doses Within Weeks

Public health officials are preparing to distribute the coronavirus vaccine across Illinois as soon as it is available, which could be in a matter of weeks.

Illinois Department of Public Health director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said she expects the state will receive about 400,000 doses of the vaccine within 48 hours of its approval by the Food and Drug Administration.

Public health officials have said the most vulnerable of the state's 12.7 million residents will get the vaccine first.

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All 11 coronavirus-management regions in Illinois moved to Tier 3 mitigations last week, which means 25 percent capacity limits at retail and grocery stores in addition to the statewide indoor dining ban.

Tier 3 mitigations also forced the closure of casinos, theaters, indoor museums, performing art centers and indoor amusement centers.

Ryne Danielson, Patch Staff contributed to this reporting