Restore the funds

The Illinois Senate on Tuesday passed a resolution that could restore funds to keep the doors open at 14 historic sites – including the Vandalia Statehouse – and 11 state parks in the state.

The 40-15 Senate vote means that body joins the Illinois House in supporting restored funding for those sites. Tuesday’s Senate bill would funnel more than $220 million toward parks, historic sites and social service programs.

Now, it’s Gov. Rod Blagojevich who stands in the way of keeping the sites open to the public.

Originally, the governor said the historic sites would close on Oct. 1. That deadline has been pushed back to Nov. 30, as politicians in Springfield search for the funding to keep the sites open.

The House and Senate measures would restore the ill-advised cuts mandated by the Blagojevich administration after it was handed a deficit budget by state lawmakers.

As we approach the year in which we’ll observe the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, the last thing we need to present to tourists is a string of ‘closed’ signs at our state parks and historic sites.

It’s time to give tourism – the state’s No. 2 industry – the priority it deserves. Restore the funding.

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