By Haley Kosik/WJEZ News
A lot has been happening down in Springfield. For starters, The state’s new fiscal year has begun without a budget in place, and the stalemate between Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democratic lawmakers seems no closer to a resolution.
Legislators yesterday considered a one-month, two-billion-dollar budget, but Rauner has already indicated he wouldn’t sign such a budget.
It’s not clear if there’s enough Republican support to pass it over his veto.
Meanwhile, to make ends meet in the short term, Rauner is borrowing money from funds designated for other purposes.
While trying to find a resolution to the new budget situation, Gov. Bruce Rauner took action on a bill yesterday.
The bill amends the Department of Public Health Powers and Duties Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois.
The bill would become law only if and when (1) the General Assembly amends the bill to conform to the Governor’s amendatory veto and the Governor certifies that amendment or (2) the General Assembly overrides the Governor’s veto.
Rauner’s action on the bill is placed on the Calendar Amendatory Veto for July 14, 2015.
In other news, a ban on smoking on all public college campuses in Illinois went into effect yesterday.
Kathy Drea, lobbyist for the American Lung Association of Illinois, said the state is the fourth to prohibit smoking on campus property, and believes students and faculty won’t take long to get used to the ban.
The only exception to the ban is if you’re in a car either driving or parked on campus. The law only applies to public institutions, though Drea said many of the state’s private colleges have already put similar smoking bans into place on their own.
