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| Legislator/School Superintendent Not Happy With Quinn's Budget Work |
(IRN) -- A state lawmaker who is also the superintendent of a school district isn't happy with some of the budget reductions imposed by the governor.
State Rep. Roger Eddy (R-Hutsonville) says rural school districts are the ones that will feel the full impact of the governor's $89 million cut in school transportation funds.
"I'm not sure why the governor seems to have this vendetta against rural Illinois," Eddy said. "I mean parents have called me this morning outraged that they're being targeted this way. They feel like they live in a rural part of the state and that this is a mandate and a service that has been provided as long as we can remember and for the governor to mess with it, it just doesn't make any sense."
Also feeling the impact will be hospitals and those that provide Medicaid services. Danny Chun, spokesman for the Illinois Hospital Association, says while the governor can't lower reimbursement rates, he has extended the time the state has to send reimbursement checks. The longer time allowed for reimbursement comes at a time when the state owes millions to health care providers and other state vendors.
"It's not just Medicaid. The state is also extremely behind on paying bills for the case of state employees and state retirees," Chun said. "In some cases hospitals haven't been paid in more than 160 days or more than five months." Reimbursement rates have been frozen since 1995 and Chun says on average they cover only 75 percent of costs.
The governor's budget director defends the governor's actions, saying that school transportation is a function for parents and local school districts and the extended reimbursement time would not force and hospitals to close.
(Illinois Radio Network) |
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| 07 01 11 by Newsroom |
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