By Adam Studzinski

BLOOMINGTON – Illinois legislators have until the end of the month to pass a budget, but one Republican lawmaker said they aren’t getting the kind of cooperation they’d like from Democrats.

Democrats control both Illinois House and Senate. State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) believed if both sides can give a little then they should be able to find a balanced budget the public can live with.

“Governor Rauner has made it abundantly clear that for him to move off his proposed budget we need to make changes to the structural environment of our state,” said Barickman. “And I support that. What we need to see is some buy-in from Democrats.”

If a budget agreement isn’t found by May 31 lawmakers will need to go into a special session. Barickman said it’s still too soon to tell if that will be necessary.

“I would really like to see the legislature and the governor come together by the end of this month,” said Barickman. “I think it’s a challenging thought to get there, but it’s one we can’t lose hold of yet.”

Barickman plans to urge his Democratic colleagues to “put partisanship aside” so lawmakers can pass a “real, common sense” budget.

Adam Studzinski can be reached at [email protected].