Illinois' legislature and the governor remain at a standoff, as Illinois enters its seventh week without a budget.
The budget dispute isn't really about the budget, per say. Rather, Gov. Bruce Rauner says that Illinois needs structural changes; only then will he talk about revenue to prevent massive cuts. Democrats refuse to go along with Rauner's demands, as they say it'll hurt the middle class.
On Rauner's wish-list:
-helping businesses by easing up on when a firm has to pay if a worker is injured, and restrictions on civil lawsuits
-constitutional amendments to limit legislators' terms and to change how their districts are drawn
and
-a hold on local property taxes, attached with rollbacks to unions' power
Rauner said during a press conference in Chicago last week that he's willing to back down some.
"We've laid out an agenda, we've taken many things off the table of negotiation," he said. "I'm willing to take some more off the table. We've got to move along."
But Rauner didn't say what he'd be willing to do without.
His remarks came after he'd dismissed a property tax freeze approved by the Senate, because it didn't include his collective bargaining provisions.
