By Cole Lauterbach, includes “Even though the state’s Constitution requires it, Illinois hasn’t passed a truly balanced budget in decades. The state’s former comptroller says the situation has worsened to the point of bankruptcy if it were allowed. Former Illinois Comptroller Leslie Munger, in a presentation to the Governmental Accounting Standards Board last month, said politicians aren’t generally accountants or economists and often approve of mathematical slights-of-hand to claim they’re passing balanced budgets.”