Citing the impact of the national economic crisis on Illinois’ revenues, Governor Rod R. Blagojevich announced a four-part plan to manage the state’s $2 billion fiscal year 2009 budget deficit, including plans to eliminate some Illinois jobs in the state government.

The Governor’s proposed plan includes passage of the Emergency Budget Act, which would give the Governor and other constitutional officers added authority to help them make additional cuts, a request to Congress for increased federal stimulus aid, and further administrative reductions in the agencies. In addition to these budget solutions, the Governor is also proposing short-term borrowing which will help manage the state’s cash flow and pay providers in a more timely matter.

“We have more difficult decisions to make. Illinois’ finances, like many other states across the nation, have felt consequences of the poor national economy. And like a family who has seen their income cut dramatically, we need to take fiscally responsible action to ensure the state can pay all of our bills and provide the core services that Illinoisans need,” said Governor Blagojevich.

Illinois is not alone in facing a FY09 budget shortfall due to lower than projected revenues. Yesterday, the New York Times reported that California faces an $11 billion shortfall and is concerned about paying bills this spring, New York has proposed $5.2 billion in “savings,” and Ohio may need a federal loan to cover unemployment costs. In total, 31 states and the District of Columbia are facing mid-year budget gaps, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

The Governor’s plan includes the following components:
Continued Belt Tightening – The Governor has already taken fiscally responsible steps by reducing the FY09 budget passed by the General Assembly by $1.4 billion, ordering all agencies to reduce spending by 3%, reducing the cost of core services, and decreasing headcount.

Emergency Budget Act – The Governor will propose legislation to give him the authority to hold back in contingency reserve as much as 8 percent of total appropriation and distributions for all General Funds spending, including agencies under the Governor, the State Board of Education, higher education, state’s pension funds, and funding to local governments.

Increased Federal Stimulus – Today Governor Blagojevich will send a letter to the congressional leadership detailing the effects that the poor economic condition has had on Illinois. The letter focuses on the areas that the State has identified with the greatest impact and requests more than $1 billion annually over the next three years.

Short-Term Borrowing – While short-term borrowing will not solve the budget deficit, the state needs to pay vendors on time and manage the state’s uneven cash flow. The Governor, the Comptroller and the Treasurer are currently working together on the borrowing plan.

“While I am dedicated to ending the year with a budget that works, I know I cannot do this alone. I am asking for support from state legislators and constitutional officers to help manage this budget in a way that continues to provide the services and programs that Illinois families need,” continued Governor Blagojevich.

Labels: Illinois Jobs

The number of Illinois jobs fell by 3,500 in August, according to the state Department of Employment Security, making this the third consecutive month that businesses reduced the number of individuals they employee. This has not happened in the Illinois in over five years. As of last month, 5,976,100 people held jobs in the state.

Due to population growth, employers must create thousands of new jobs every month to keeping the unemployment rate steady and offer work to newcomers. Because of this, the drop in Illinois jobs also created a rise in unemployment.

Statistics from DES show that the state’s jobless rate increased from July’s 7.2 percent to 7.3 percent. According to the U.S. Labor Department, the national unemployment rate also rose to 6.1 percent. As of a year ago, the state’s unemployment rate was 5.2 percent, while the national average was 4.7 percent.

The area of employment that experienced the greatest decrease in Illinois jobs was trade, transportation and utilities, which lost around 3,300 jobs during the month of August. In July employers in the industry did away with 2,000 positions. Despite this, it remained the largest employer in the Illinois, with approximately 1,216,200 individuals working in this sector. Other industries that lost jobs last month include manufacturing, which did away with 700 jobs, and the government sector, where 1,000 jobs were done away with.

Employers in the construction industry added 900 new jobs statewide, which is surprising when one considers that the housing market crisis has severely injured this industry throughout the nation. Overall, construction in Illinois has lost 7,900 job during the last 12 months. As of last month, 261,900 people worked in this sector.

Another industry that increased the number of jobs it provided during the month of August was education and health services, which gained 500 new jobs. Due to the necessity of the work provided by this sector, it has remained almost unaffected by the struggling economy. Over the course of the last year, employers in Illinois have added 10,600 jobs in this industry, raising the number of individuals it employees to 791,100.

Labels: Illinois Jobs

In an attempt to fix a $420 million hole in the state’s budget, many with Illinois jobs working for the government will be laid off. State Treasure Alexi Giannoulias recently announced that his office had no other option than layoffs and salary freezes to mend the state’s financial problems.

There is some concern that doing this will only hurt the state even more. Since fewer individuals will be employed, the amount of payroll taxes collected will decrease. On top of this, workers effected will not be spending as much money, which will result in the state receiving less money in sales taxes.

In Chicago, almost every state employee at the Thompson Center is expected to be effected by the budget cut. Even those who do not stand to lose their jobs will either be victim to a decreased salary, a greater work load or both.

On a state level, at the Illinois Treasure’s Office there is already a salary freeze in effect. All employees that are not part of a union have been told that they must take two days off of work without pay.

As of now, the only government officials who are safe are those that work for Cook County. Because of the hike in sales tax last Spring, Board President Todd Stroger has more than enough money to meet the demands of his payroll, which is extremely beneficial for the area considering that the majority of new hires made this year in Cook County were doctors and nurses.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan has suggested that early retirement should go into effect for eligible employees along with the salary and hiring freeze. So far, her office ahs already taken a 25 percent reduction in its budget.

According to some reports, as many as 1,000 Illinois jobs cut get the ax. Some officials have suggest having police officers and firefighters take a leave of absence to aid in saving money, but the city has no plans at this time to layoff any of these individuals.

Labels: Illinois Jobs

Illinois jobless rate dropped slightly in April to 5.4 percent from the previous month’s 5.5 percent, according to state officials. This is still slightly higher than the national average of 5 percent and up significantly from April of 2007’s 4.8 percent.

Like elsewhere in the nation, the manufacturing and construction sectors continue to do away with Illinois jobs. Both of these industries have been greatly effected by the housing market and rising price of fuel. The state’s Department of Employment Security says that manufacturers cut approximately 1,900 Illinois jobs last month alone, partially due to the auto industry’s struggles. According to the department, there was a loss of 1,200 construction jobs. This means that there are now 671,600 manufacturing and 264,600 construction jobs in the sate.

Despite these decreases in employment, professional and business services added 3,400 Illinois jobs. Educational and health services also added 1,800 new positions. These two industries helped to balance the problems that manufacturing and construction sectors could have created. Overall, the department says that 9,300 Illinois jobs have been created so far this year.

State officials have been discussing the movement of certain government jobs. Originally it was planned that 148 jobs with the Illinois Department of Transportation would be moved from Springfield to southern Illinois, although the exact location remains unknown. IDOT is now saying that the number of positions to be moved will be closer to 110. Brian Williamsen, a spokesperson for the agency said that this is still an estimate and not the final word on the transfers.

Governor Rod Blagojevich believes that transferring these jobs in Illinois will help the struggling economy in the southern part of the state. Williamsen agrees that the transfers could have a big impact. Positions that maybe staying in Springfield include that of the director of the Division of Traffic Safety and associated top staff members.

Last week, Governor Blagojevich said that he had “pretty much” decided the exact city he would like to transfer the jobs to, but has yet to announced the location. Perhaps Chicago's in need of some jobs?

Labels: Chicago Jobs, Illinois Jobs