Gamble your way out of a budget mess

REVENUE from expanding gambling in Illinois could ease the pain from budget cuts being proposed by Gov. Pat Quinn. Behind closed doors, there is reportedly a compromise being pieced together which could bring casinos to Chicago, Rockford, Danville, southern Cook County and Lake County, and a one-time infusion of more than $1 billion in licensing fees that could help pay down the state’s massive pile of unpaid bills.

Quinn said too many governors and lawmakers have spent too much over the past 35 years. “Today, our rendezvous with reality has arrived,” Quinn said. “This budget contains truths you may not want to hear,” Quinn said. “But these are truths that you do need to know. And I believe you can handle the truth.”

The added revenue could contribute towards healthcare and pension plans. A panel of lawmakers has an April 17 deadline to submit recommendations on reforms to reduce costs. “I want to repeat: everything is on the table for our pension working group,” Quinn said. Quinn may not be easily swayed towards this option. East Moline Mayor John Thodos would welcome slot machines in his city, but “I don’t ever see it happening.” The main reason Thodos doesn’t expect the slot machine plan to go forward is that Quinn opposes it. His city collects some property taxes from the land, but having slots “would help our city tremendously because we don’t get the (gambling) revenue stream,” he said. “All we’ve got left is the sore reminder of how it it used to be.”

Quinn representative Brooke Anderson cautioned that a gambling expansion plan is not a cure-all for the state’s crushing budget woes. “We don’t think you can gamble your way out of this budget mess,” Anderson said. But, the governor continues to send a team of aides to the gambling negotiations in hopes of finding an agreement that can be supported by all parties.