New spending law draws criticism

SPRINGFIELD -- Governor Quinn recently signed a law calling for a lot of new spending, and critics say it's the last thing the state should be doing right now. Kristina Rasmussen, with the Illinois Policy Institute, says lawmakers need to realize that the state is broke. She says it doesn't make sense to spend more when millions are owed in unpaid bills.

The new law will allow for the distribution of more than $2 billion in funding to various programs and services. On the list, DCFS. The agency will get about $25 million restored to its budget. About $90 million was cut from it last year.

Road projects will also see more money, about $675 million. Advocates say it'll help create more jobs which in turn will help the economy.

Rasmussen says what's wrong with this law far outweighs any good. She says if lawmakers wanted to fund those programs, they could've made separate bills for them. Instead, they decided to create a massive bill which, she says, includes a lot of wasteful spending.

She points out one school district is getting more money for general operating costs and says state taxpayer dollars shouldn't be footing the bill for that. She adds the law will also finance retiree healthcare. It's a program Governor Quinn was given the freedom to reform last year, but failed to. Supporters disagree with Rasmussen's argument and say the law will help a lot of projects and programs struggling to stay afloat.