Metro East Sun

State Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer (R-Jacksonville) said he feels there’s now no denying what he’s been advocating for years when it comes to a need for transparency in creating the state budget.

“We’ve just recently been notified about the problems within the budget,” Davidsmeyer said in a video posted to YouTube. “This reiterates the need, and I’ve been filing a bill for about five year now that requires the budget to be posted online for at least 72 hours prior to any vote. When I was on the Jacksonville council we always had two votes. That allowed the general public to come in and see the budget.”

Davidsmeyer argues that it's past time a similar approach came to Springfield, saying that not many of the numbers in this year’s spending plan hold up under tight scrutiny.

Republican lawmakers point to a debt price tag of $3.4 billion, in addition to a $3 billion Federal Reserve loan due to be repaid soon, the McLean County Times reported. 

“When a new speaker was elected, we were told there’s a new day in Illinois,” Davidsmeyer said. “Well, the new day is the same exact process. You can even change the people, but if the process doesn’t change, it’s the same thing.”

Davidsmeyer argues there’s a good reason Democrats oppose the idea of transparency as staunchly as he insists they always have.  

“It’s not because they’re worried about the minority party, it’s that their own members may come up with reasons not to fully support bad budgets,” he said.