DeKALB | Today marks third deadline for Illinois legislators to come up with a state budget, but NIU officials aren’t pushing the panic button just yet.

State lawmakers were supposed to come up with a budget by May 31, but have been deadlocked for months on the issue, instead opting to pass an emergency one-month extension when the new fiscal year began July 1 just to keep state operations – including NIU – running.

The extension expires today, and Gov. Rod Blagojevich has drawn the ire of many lawmakers in the General Assembly by pushing for another one-month extension. Legislative leaders disagree, and are instead working to pass a full-year budget.

“Obviously everyone is concerned with the lack of progress, but there may be a glimmer of hope this week,” said Ken Zehnder, NIU’s assistant director of external affairs. Zehnder will travel to Springfield today to address NIU’s concerns to lawmakers.

One such concern is that NIU may not receive any or all of the $19 million in repairs and expansion for the Stevens Building or the $2 million increase in operating funds for NIU Blagojevich proposed in March.

Zehnder said he is “still hopeful” on the Stevens Building money, and that NIU expects a 1-2 percent increase in general operating funds. The Board of Higher Education submitted a proposal of a 1.5 percent increase to the governor for the 2008 fiscal year budget.

The governor, pushing a plan to provide health insurance for everyone in the state, may be forced to cut some of his proposals to meet a compromise with lawmakers.

Lawmakers “haven’t been on the same page as the governor in the past months,” Zehnder said. “House republicans are firm on saying that we can’t keep doing this over and over, and in order to pass a budget, the democrats need the republicans.”

If all parties can’t reach an agreement by Aug. 10, public K-12 schools will no longer receive state checks. NIU has a bit more of a cushion, Zehnder said, because of the tuition monies it will receive from students before the fall semester begins.

Zehnder predicts the legislature will pass a full-year budget by the end of the week, but the governor could choose to veto the budget if the legislative leaders can’t pass the budget with a two-thirds majority.

“Every legislature is different,” Zehnder said, “but this is an odd year.”