State Budget: Past Due (Enough is Enough)

Thursday, April 27 ^th, Approximately 150 Illinois attended the first AARP Illinois-NPR Illinois town hall on the state budget forum entitled: State Budget: Past Due.  This event held at the Wyndham: Springfield Center is a key component of our Enough is Enough campaign.

With nearly $10 billion in deficit and $14 billion in unpaid bills, millions of Illinoisans of all ages have lost critical services and all Illinoisans now face burdens as the crisis worsens. Illinois needs a comprehensive budget solution that restores fiscal solvency.

A great panel was led by Executive Council Member Howard Peters, WTTW political reporter Amanda Vinicky, and Director of Govt Relations for Illinois State University Jonathan Lackland and moderated by NPR Illinois News Director Sean Crawford introduced the topic and opened the floor for comments and questions from the public.

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Theresa Collins, an AARP Illinois Executive Council Member from Alton for  the first speaker painting a powerful picture of how the budget impasse has disrupted social services in her community.

Participants spoke openly, candidly, and eloquently about their frustrations with the inaction in Springfield and pointed towards the Governor and the General Assembly to break the gridlock and come up with solutions.

ABC affiliate WICS-TV Channel 20 and CBS affiliate WCIA-TV Channel 3 covered the event and opened their nightly and morning news with their pieces.