Bustos, delegation demand Rauner pay domestic violence money

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - Illinois' 11 Democratic congressmen have signed a letter to Gov. Bruce Rauner demanding that he restore funding to domestic violence shelters.

Rep. Cheri Bustos (BOO'-stose) initiated the letter sent Friday.

It sprung from an Associated Press report that domestic-violence program funding was omitted from a temporary budget last summer. The Department of Human Services waited nearly six months to alert providers.

Bustos is serving her third term and is considering opposing Rauner for governor in 2018.

Human Services spokeswoman Meredith Krantz called the letter "hyper-partisan" and unhelpful. She says the authors should urge Democrats and Republicans in Springfield to agree on a budget solution. The state has had been without a budget for nearly two years.

The fiscal 2018 budget Rauner proposed this week includes full program funding at $18.6 million.