The governor introduced an election‑year budget that adds roughly $879 million in new spending, financed in part by some $589 million in what he likely considers politically safe tax hikes. His proposal lacks serious spending reform, and the claimed savings largely involve the federal government and technical adjustments doing the heavy lifting, not genuine cost discipline.
A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.