By Eric Stock

SPRINGFIELD – Gov. Bruce Rauner will try to bridge the deep divide between the political parties and lay the groundwork for a budget agreement as he delivers his third State of the State address on Wednesday.

“We’ve got to change the system,” Rauner told WJBC’s Scott Laughlin. “We need truly balanced budget, which we haven’t had for a long, long time.”

PODCAST: Listen to Scott’s interview with Gov. Rauner on WJBC. 
PODCAST: Listen to Scott’s interview with Rep. Brady on WJBC.

WJBC will carry the address live at noon.

Rauner said he’s optimistic because Senate leaders have been trying to craft a compromise.

“I’m heartened that senators are trying to come together to get a bipartisan compromise, to get a balanced budget with structural changes,” Rauner said. “I applaud them for that. I think it’s still evolving. I think we should encourage them to keep working to see what they can come up with.”

State Rep. Dan Brady, R-Bloomington, said it will take compromise to get a budget done.

“”The reality is when you are in the situation that we are, some of the things that not only have to be talked about have to be executed eventually are things that a lot of things people don’t like to talk about,” Brady said. “That’s taxes, that’s revenue and that’s cuts.”

Brady added there’s hard feelings on both sides as lawmakers have failed to come together.

“It’s very difficult sometimes to close the barn door after the horse is gone,” Brady said. “I don’t think it’s irreparable, but there’s been a lot of damage done.”

Illinois faces nearly $130 billion of unfunded pension liability, over $10 billion in backlogged bills, and three consecutive years of outbound migration.

Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].