Capitol Report
By John McCabe
IPCSA Legislative Liaison

I wish I could start with the good news, but it will have to wait.  The Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission, the Legislature’s revenue forecasting agency, predicted recently that for State Fiscal Year 2006 there would only be $325 million new spending available.  Unfortunately, there is already more that $600 million in new pension costs for FY 2006, $1.2 billion (yes, that is a “b”) in one-time 2005 revenue that will need to be replaced, and downstate teachers are looking for an early retirement option that could cost another $900 million. 

We will be facing another horrendous budget situation next year. And probation fees will continue to be heavily relied on again next year. Also, it is too soon to tell whether sufficient probation fees will be available next year like they apparently were this year.

The recent election will have little impact on the make-up of the General Assembly.  The Republicans added one net new member in each chamber.  Sadly, a good friend of probation, Sen. Patrick Welch (D-Peru) was defeated.  In the Senate, the Democrats will enjoy a 32-27 advantage.  In the House, the advantage will be a slightly larger, 65-53.  

As most of you know, another good friend of probation, Sen. Barack Obama was elected to the U.S. Senate with over 70 percent of the vote.  You should all congratulate yourselves, for what could have been a close race, Sen. Obama’s support among probation officers put him over the top and into the stratosphere. 

In a final note, several people in the criminal justice community were unhappy with me over suggestions last Spring that the cuts to probation fees could be utilized, directly or indirectly, to fund the judges’ cost of living increase.  I apologize for not having enough information at the time those assertions were made.  Based on a meeting I had with AOIC personnel, we were going to be cut, and the cost of living increase was going to be funded.  There was not an exact correlation, but it was significant. 

The next day, the cost of living increase was removed from the line item for Judicial pay, but our cuts remained.  It is still possible to transfer amounts among the line items at any time during the State fiscal year, including our probation fees.  We will all have to wait between now and the end of the State fiscal year to see if money has been transferred.