Rauner, unions vow to appeal ruling limiting state worker paychecks

Dealing a blow to Gov. Bruce Rauner's pledge to keep public worker paychecks flowing while state government limps along without a budget, a Cook County judge ruled Tuesday that state employees must be paid only federal minimum wage while the broader political battle at the Capitol plays out.

The ruling may not be the final word on the fate of state worker pay, however. The Rauner administration, the comptroller's office and the state's largest public employee union quickly appealed the decision. Comptroller Leslie Munger has said her office can't even process the smaller paychecks in time, given the complexity of the payroll systems. And state lawmakers will return to the Capitol on Wednesday as Democrats try to approve a one-month emergency services budget that would pay some, but not all, state workers.

The court action came as the state prepared to enter a second week without a budget for the financial year that began July 1. Rauner vetoed much of the spending plan lawmakers sent to him last month and has continued to insist that ruling Democrats in the General Assembly take up his pro-business, anti-union legislative agenda before a budget deal can be reached.

The rookie Republican governor tried to minimize the lack of a budget by assuring state workers they would be paid in full and ordering them to continue reporting to work. But Democratic Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said the state doesn't have the spending authority to make the payments and took the question to court. Madigan is the daughter of Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan, who is leading the resistance to Rauner's legislative agenda.

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