Cut spending before increasing taxes

Pat Quinn isn't going to get any kind of honeymoon period typically afforded a newly installed chief executive.

And that's OK.

As John Patterson and Nicole Milstead's story in Monday's Daily Herald pointed out, he's got an economic disaster to try to solve. What we expect, however, is that the state's legislators will work with Quinn to help him figure out those solutions.

What we'd like to hear less of is comments like this one, expressed in Saturday's Daily Herald: "Everyone who knows him is skeptical of his abilities," said state Rep. Mark Beaubien of Barrington.

What would be refreshing is more comments like this (and then action from Quinn): "The very first thing I would like Gov. Quinn to do is reach out to both sides of the aisle and get our input on what we think has to be done to begin to turn around the paralyzation of state government."

It's a huge task. When it comes to the state's financial woes, we believe the first thing to do is to look at cutting expenses, not increasing taxes. That's the sound advice that former Gov. Jim Edgar is giving Quinn. "If you raise taxes before you get other expenditures under control, you will never get them under control," Edgar said.

However, it may be necessary, as Edgar also says, to increase taxes at some point. The current state budget (which ends June 30) is predicted to be short by nearly $2 billion. Next year's budget could end up $1 billion in the hole assuming the economy doesn't turn around. And the state is facing another $2 billion to keep up with mandated pension and Medicaid payments.

But increasing taxes in a deep recession will put more strain on taxpayers already struggling to pay their bills. And it could reduce consumer and business spending further and in the process lengthen the recession.

"Until accountability is built in, it is not time to look at a (tax) increase," said Democratic state Rep. Kathy Ryg of Vernon Hills. We couldn't agree more.

Accountability means our legislators will have to make some hard choices about where to cut state spending. And Quinn needs to show the leadership needed to make those hard choices.

"We've increased spending almost a billion dollars a year for the last six years," Beaubien said. "It's great to sit there and vote for more school funding and increased health care. We don't have the money."

The times are tough and they demand a state Legislature and a governor who work together to figure out the best way to get through them. The times demand that the politics and division of the last six years be put aside.

No, we're not naive enough to believe that all politics will be gone from the equation: The Democrats will want to hold on to the power they have in Springfield and the GOP sees a light at the end of the tunnel. We'll be watching, though, to see who really is working together and who really is making the necessary hard choices.