Three specific events triggered the 2012 crisis: an abrupt reduction in federal and state funding (see Figure 1), the inability of the district to cut many of its costs, and political pressures on the district to spend available revenues in a given year. (educationnext.org)
Fluctuation in state spending tracks very closely with gross domestic product (GDP)(Figure 5).9 This is primarily driven by legal restrictions in all states but Vermont that require balanced budgets (generally, budgets for which budgeted expenditures do not exceed available revenues).10 (thelearninglandscape.org)
Illinois has the worst credit rating in the nation, and was downgraded by Fitch Ratings to two notches above «junk» status in February, in large part due to «the financial implications of spending far in excess of available revenues,» according to the ratings agency. (illinoispolicy.org)