G-Rod's budget plan would make things worse, report says.

For a state facing "colossal financial issues," Gov. Rod Blagojevich's proposed 2009 budget fails to address key funding weaknesses and likely would worsen the state's precarious fiscal condition, a prominent watchdog group concludes in a report to be released Monday.

The Civic Federation of Chicago, a non-partisan research group, criticized Blagojevich's budget blueprint as relying too heavily on raising business taxes and for taking on billions more in debt. The group also opposed the governor's idea of selling at least a portion of the Illinois State Lottery to help pay for a proposed $25 billion capital infrastructure program.

In a 62-page analysis, the group urges the governor and state lawmakers to address systemic problems, most specifically $44 billion in unfunded pension liabilities and $24 billion in retiree health-care liabilities."We see so little attention here to any kind of reform, and we just can't keep going down this road," said Laurence Msall, president of the federation. "The state needs to get serious about addressing its structural problems."

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