Does Rauner's Budget Help the State at the Expense of the 'Burbs?

Earlier this week, newly elected Gov. Bruce Rauner unveiled his first proposed budget, a plan that opponents criticized as cutting too much from health care for the poor, pensions and state universities.

One of the areas facing the fiscal ax is the state income tax revenue cities across Illinois receive. Rauner wants to slice that in half, eliminating about $600 million from the coffers of municipalities statewide.

That proposal has upset suburban Chicago mayors, who think this kind of slashing to their budgets is unfair.

“We’ve made cuts over the years, particularly after the economy went bad, and have been putting money away in a rainy day fund,” Orland Park Mayor Dan McLaughlin told the Southtown Star. “That’s proper budgeting. … Now the state is basically saying that because you stayed within your budget and saved money we’re going to punish you. That’s wrong.”

>>Read more about how these cuts will affect Chicago suburbs in the Southtown Star