The state’s unpaid vendor debt declined during the week ending March 14, breaking a modest streak where the state’s debt load had inched upward in each of the last several weeks.
According to the Illinois comptroller's homepage, debt at the end the week was $8,699,941,170.26, down from last week’s $9,386,070,931.79.
Since the start of 2018, Illinois’ unpaid debt load has been reduced by almost a half, a development largely resulting from Gov. Bruce Rauner moving to issue $6 billion worth of general obligation bonds, with all the funds earmarked for the state’s massive debt load.
Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza
Rauner, who is facing a stiff challenge Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton) in the March 20 Republican primary, recently kicked off talks for the next fiscal tear budget by calling for an end to what he called “wasteful spending.”
The state’s debt load regularly hit record highs during a two-year period where the state operated with no balanced budget in place, resulting in the state’s debt load more than tripling.
In January, Comptroller Susana Mendoza released her first monthly debt transparency report, which indicated the state was hit with more than $1.03 billion in late payments during 2017. The debt transparency act went into effect on Jan. 1 and is aimed at keeping state legislators and residents abreast of the state’s financial status.
Alerts Sign-up