Illinois is so bad that even the New York Times is taking notice.

For the last few years, California stood more or less unchallenged as a symbol of the fiscal collapse of states during the recession. Now Illinois has shouldered to the fore, as its dysfunctional political class refuses to pay the state’s bills and refuses to take the painful steps — cuts and tax increases — to close a deficit of at least $12 billion, equal to nearly half the state’s budget.

Then there is the spectacularly mismanaged pension system, which is at least 50 percent underfunded and, analysts warn, could push Illinois into insolvency if the economy fails to pick up.

When the state doesn’t pay its bills, it hurts a lot of other government agencies — for instance, school districts. At a recent District 150 school board meeting, Comptroller/Treasurer Pam Schau reported that the state owes District 150 $9,125,000, as of June 23. That’ll put a dent in your operating budget.

Despite this state of affairs, our representatives are continuing to spend money on non-essentials, such as giving tax breaks to millionaire developers.