Springfield, IL – Illinois Senate Republican Deputy Leader Sue Rezin (R-Morris) issued the following statement in response to the Governor’s proposed budget and State of the State Address:

“Illinois is already the number one producer of clean nuclear energy in the nation, and I was proud to lead the effort to finally lift our decades-long moratorium on new nuclear construction. Expanding modern nuclear energy is essential to maintaining grid reliability, growing our economy, and bringing long term stability to electricity prices.

“I welcome the Governor’s acknowledgment that nuclear energy must be part of Illinois’ future and that we need more reliable baseload generation to meet growing demand. However, expanding nuclear energy requires more than executive orders and announcements. It requires regulatory certainty, streamlined permitting, and a commitment to policies that actually reduce costs for families.

“While the Governor’s desire to expand nuclear energy within the state is certainly a good thing, it doesn’t make up for the fact that his proposed budget would set a record for government spending and has increased by 40 percent since he first took office.

“Despite the fact that the Governor would like to blame the federal government for Illinois’ stagnated economy, the truth is that we fallen far behind the rest of the nation. Meanwhile, Illinois families are leaving our state at one of the highest rates in the nation because the cost of living is too high and the government continues to grow faster than the private sector.

“Illinois needs real fiscal discipline, economic growth, and policies that deliver affordability, reliability, and opportunity, not just headlines.”