August 18, 2017

To the Honorable Members of

The Illinois House of Representatives,

100th General Assembly:

Today I veto House Bill 3143, which amends the State Prompt Payment Act to add certain human services providers to the list of those eligible for interest penalty payments from the state.

The challenges of doing business with the State of Illinois, including the years of frustration in dealing with devastating payment delays, are numerous and in need of attention.  It is clear that we need dependable balanced budgets so that our partners are not forced to wait months or, in some cases, years to receive payment from the state.   But the state’s ongoing problems with cash flow and the timeliness of payments will not be aided by adding to its mountain of liabilities through higher interest costs, which is precisely what this bill does. 

The solution to our problem is through the continued improvement of fiscal practices and truly balanced budgets that allow the state to actually meet its financial commitments.  Unfortunately, while well intentioned, this bill will force Illinois taxpayers to bear even greater costs as a result of years of unbalanced budgets and fiscal mismanagement, and will tax an already insufficient pool of resources for serving our most vulnerable residents.

Therefore, pursuant to Section 9(b) of Article IV of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, I hereby return House Bill 3143, entitled “AN ACT concerning finance”, with the foregoing objections, vetoed in its entirety.

Sincerely,

Bruce Rauner

GOVERNOR