SPRINGFIELD- State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) issued the statement below following Gov. Bruce Rauner’s budget address.

“For the third time in a row, the governor failed to live up to his constitutionally required duty to present a balanced budget to lead our state out of the current budget mess.

“While the governor sits on the sidelines, I look forward to continuing to work toward a balanced, bipartisan budget in the Senate that protects funding for higher education and services for the disabled, while including necessary reforms such as a property tax freeze and local government consolidation.”