photo courtesy of http://www.whatamimissinghere.com

For the last few years, many in the economic world have been cynical of states like Illinois, California and others for how bad their government books are when it comes to finances. That time is over and now they must be looked at for examples of what is about to happen. This post is not to mock Illinois, only to use them as an example.

CBS Chicago ran a story of an example of how bad off their finances are during their budget showdown. The state keeps drifting towards worse financial shape as no real cuts or reforms are dealth with. This is just one example of what they are doing:

The Illinois Lottery says big winners since July 1st aren’t getting any money yet because there’s no state budget, meaning the state has no legal authority to pay out lottery winnings.

The good news is: You won the lottery.

“It was a happy day. My husband was really excited. I thought he was going to have a heart attack,” said 73-year-old Helen Whitfield of Bourbonnais.

The bad news is: It may be awhile before you’re paid.

They were planning to move to Florida – since they won a $400,000 prize in the lottery.

She says her husband called the lottery – wondering where the money is.

“He called and he said, ‘Can’t you put a rush on it? It’s been since July 20 I hit it,’” she said.

But the lottery says because of the “ongoing budget situation” in Springfield, payments above $25,000 are delayed.