Ill. cuts include layoffs, park closures

SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Nov. 30 (UPI) -- The Illinois government has laid off more than 80 state employees and closed nearly 20 state parks and historical sites to save funds, officials say.

Facing rising costs and a decline in state revenue, state government officials have begun wholesale budget cuts aimed at maintaining their balance sheets, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said Sunday.

But those cuts in employment and state sites will come with a price ranging from a loss of history to a decline in civilian confidence in the government, officials say.

"We're losing history," said Cahokia Courthouse historic site technician Jeff Winter, whose St. Clair County site has been tabbed for closure.

"Politicians are fond of criticizing deadbeat parents who refuse to meet their obligations, but state government is becoming the biggest deadbeat of all," Lutheran Social Services of Illinois president, the Rev. Frederick Aigner, alleged in a statement.

The office of State Comptroller Dan Hynes said the state is currently an estimated $4 billion behind in various payments as state revenue has declined substantially, the Post-Dispatch reported.