SPRINGFIELD – At a budget hearing this morning, Illinois’ state agencies painted a bleak picture of state government’s future next year. The state is expecting a multi-billion dollar drop in revenue, resulting in across-the-board budget cuts of nearly 20%.

The Department of Children and Family Services, which stands to lose nearly $140 million, will need to eliminate housing, counseling, education and health programs for nearly 3,500 children.

“There are unfortunately thousands of abused and neglected children in our state. Cutting the funds to protect them will only put them back in harm’s way,” said State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield), who serves on one of the Senate budget committees and who chairs the Human Services Subcommittee on Special Issues Relating to DCFS. “The Department of Children and Family Services barely has the resources it needs to do its job now.”

Morrison is also very concerned about cuts to other important human services programs. People with disabilities will lose access to vital services that allow them to live in the community instead of special homes and other programs that greatly improve their quality of life. Tens of thousands of seniors will lose access to the services that allow them to stay out of expensive nursing homes. The Department of Human Services will cut child care services that affect thousands of children and their parents.

“People need to understand that we’re not talking about a hypothetical situation,” Morrison said. “Without some significant changes to state law, these drastic cuts will happen. As residents of Illinois, we need to decide if this is the state we want to live in.”