Rauner Signals He'll OK Budget Deal For 'Lasting' Property Tax Freeze
(CBS) -- It's now been 692 days since Illinois had a state budget. That's almost two years, for those of you scoring at home.
On Tuesday, for the first time, Gov. Bruce Rauner identified the one issue that's holding up a senate budget deal, as both sides continue to trade political potshots.
CBS 2 Political Reporter Derrick Blakley has more.
In a Facebook Live chat, the Republican incumbent publicly divulged his bottom line for completing a budget compromise: a property tax freeze.
"At this point, the biggest issue, the one that's really holding things up far and away the most, is the property tax issue," Rauner said. "We need a true, lasting property tax freeze, along with local control."
Just this week, the Illinois Senate passed a two-year property tax freeze. But the governor's demanding a four-year freeze, with future increases left up to voters.
"You should control through a voter referendum how your property taxes move," the governor said.
Democrats worry that freezing property taxes would strangle schools, especially impoverished districts already squeezed for funding.
Meantime, Democratic gubernatorial hopeful J.B. Pritzker blasted Rauner for hanging out on Facebook Live with just a week to go until the legislative session ends.
"Bruce Rauner needs to stop the political stunts and focus on getting our state out of the crisis he created," he said.
Rauner and his legislative opponents continue their multi-media shouting match, with Rauner's campaign attacking Springfield's Democratic leadership. Pritzker's new website, called "Crisis Creatin' Rauner," blames the governor for the impasse and features a countdown clock to remind everyone how long the state's been without a budget.