Swanson: “Growing the economy is the only real, long-term solution” for Illinois

State Representative Dan Swanson issued the following statement following Governor Rauner’s Budget Address today:

“I was grateful to see the emphasis on Kewanee’s Correctional Life Skills Re-Entry Center during the Governor’s Budget Address,” said Swanson. “This program will help offenders leave custody, find a new job, and build a new life. I also agree with fully funding transportation funding to schools. This is long overdue. Our schools are scrambling to transport students at the expense of cutting curriculum and other programs.”

Swanson continued, “the speech was also great news for Illinois Veterans. The Governor proposed a new Veterans Home in Chicago, which will help with overcrowding at Downstate facilities at Quincy and LaSalle-Peru. This will provide opportunities for Veterans as well as better care. However, all of this is only possible with a growing economy. It was great to see the emphasis on growing our tax base and acknowledging we cannot tax our way to prosperity, we must grow our way to prosperity.”