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Illinois Officials Push Governor Rauner to Sell Bonds to Cut Unpaid Bills

  • Unpaid bills have ratched up to $15.3 billion, near record
  • State could save money if it refinances debt, S&P has said
Illinois governor Bruce Rauner

Illinois governor Bruce Rauner

Photographer: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Illinois officials are pushing Governor Bruce Rauner to sell bonds to pay bills left from the state’s record budget impasse, saying it would reduce steep interest penalties of as much as $2 million a day.

The spending package that the legislature enacted two months ago over Rauner’s veto authorized the state to issue as much as $6 billion of securities to cover bills that accumulated during a unprecedented two-year standoff over the budget.