Peoria Standard

Sen. Win Stoller (R-Peoria) is dissatisfied with the governor's decision not to pay off the unemployment insurance trust fund debt in its entirety.

In a news conference held on March 28, Stoller criticized Gov. J. B. Pritzker on his decision to put only $2.7 billion into the unemployment trust fund instead of paying off the $4.5 billion debt fully. Stoller thinks this situation was completely 'avoidable.'

"While other states took action, our governor did nothing except go on a spending spree using some of these ARPA dollars for pork projects and bigger government and other non-COVID related spending," Stoller said. "He sat on his hands instead of rolling up his sleeves and taking action, and now we're faced with billions of dollars in debt and no plan to solve it other than impending tax benefit cuts, tax increases and more debt. We had all the money we needed to solve this problem, and we didn't do it."

The state will use $2.7 billion of the remaining ARPA funds to put toward COVID-19-related debts the state incurred during the pandemic. The state will not fully fund the UI trust fund like other states have done. 

"This has been a complete train wreck" and a "complete and unmitigated disaster of the governor's making, and it was completely avoidable," Stoller said, as reported by WTTW.

"This action will lead to the largest tax increase on business in the state of Illinois in this state's history," Sen. Don DeWitte (R-St. Charles) said to WTTW. "Employers who have been treated with absolute disregard throughout this pandemic will literally be left holding the bag, and will be responsible for filing the remaining deficit to the Unemployment Insurance Trust fund." 

The General Assembly has until April 8 to pass the Fiscal Year 2023 budget, which includes the funding for the unemployment insurance trust fund.