Chung Shrinks Government Bureaucracy, Cuts Unnecessary Spending with New Budget

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — State Rep. Charon Chung, D-Bloomington, backed a new state budget on Saturday that promotes government efficiency, cuts unnecessary government bureaucracy, and lowers costs for working families across the state.

“Budgets are created using revenue estimates, but our state’s revenue estimates had to be continually revised to account for the economic uncertainty resulting from the destructive policies of the Trump Administration. These uncertainties spurred budget discussions to include a Budget Reserve for Immediate Disbursements and Governmental Emergencies Fund, or the BRIDGE Fund, empowering the state to create contingency funds that cover short-term emergencies and revenue shortfalls. I am happy to share that this budget comes in at 55.2 billion dollars, lower than the governor’s budget proposal from a few months ago.”

“This budget prioritizes government efficiency by making over $380 million in cuts to government bureaucracy, including over $193 million in cuts to operational and administrative costs of government agencies, empowering our state to redirect that funding towards working families and the services they depend on.”

Addressing the environmental impact of data centers, Chung passed legislation that empowers the growing number of data centers in central Illinois to use treated wastewater for facility needs, diverting clean drinking water back to Bloomington and Normal and keeping costs down for individuals and families in the community (House Bill 1538).

“I’m excited that data centers have taken interest in Central Illinois and are investing in our economy but we need to balance the needs of our community with the needs of data centers. House Bill 1538 does just that; it keeps clean drinking water for residential use and allows data centers to use treated wastewater for their facilities instead.”

“Even though drafting a budget is always a complex and intricate process, this year has been especially difficult due to the constantly-changing policies coming from the Trump Administration and the uncertainty of how much federal funding our state will receive. That’s why we have taken a compassionate and responsible approach to our budget, focusing on saving money without cutting services to working families or the most vulnerable.”