State Senator Andy Manar is confident this year’s budget will be used as a framework for the coming fiscal year’s budget. He says the relative calm in the news about the current budget shows that it has been a successful state budget.
Manar appeared as a guest on the Newstalk WTIM Morning Show. He says for the fourth year in a row, Governor Bruce Rauner did not propose a balanced budget. But he says Rauner did take lessons from the current budget.
Manar serves as the Senate’s Appropriations Committee Chair. He says lawmakers have set spending limits in the current budget that won’t let the bills continue to pile up on the state government’s doorsteps.
Manar says after the budget stalemate ended last year, he doesn’t see lawmakers wanting to start another dilemma by not passing a budget. But he says there is still work to do.
Manar says the Appropriations Committee is currently holding hearings two to three times a week to hear from agency directors and other officials about their budget requests. He says these hearings are open to the public and normally last about eight weeks.
