Illinois has taken strides to correct its budget deficit in recent years, but the tax debate is coming back up.

A presentation held in the Saluki Stadium Club Suites on Thursday helped illustrate Illinois’ financial situation.

The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute hosted the presentation, which featured Dan Long, the executive director of the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability.

David Yepsen, director of the institute, said the commission is useful because it provides an objective review of legislature and finances.

The commission uses numbers to illustrate what is happening in the economy, tax revenues and the state’s pension system.

Yepsen said the numbers tell a simple story.

“Illinois is in the worst financial shape than any state in the country,” he said.

The state is facing issues similar to ones of 2011: a rising deficit and an unfriendly business climate, according to the report issued by Long.

Illinois lawmakers combated the debt issue with the 2011 Temporary Tax Increase, which will expire in January 2015 and lower the state’s income tax rate from 5 to 3.75 percent for individuals, and 7 to 4.8 percent for corporations.

“Between fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2015, the state has taken in $31.5 billion from the increase in income tax,” Long said.

The state has managed to pay most of its deficit payments since the tax increase was inducted, and had a fiscal surplus in 2011 and 2013. The state’s budget deficit is at $4 billion, down from $6 billion in 2010, according to a report presented by Long.

The report predicts a $2 billion drop off in net revenue from 2014 to 2015. This projected loss is an effect of the income tax decrease.

There will be a further reduction of $2 billion in 2016, which will leave the state with a $4 billion loss in revenue, according to the economic budget report.

With the income tax rate at 5 percent for individuals, the state has brought in about $8 billion each year for the past three years, and in 2011 an additional $2 billion came in. Between this amount and the regular income tax rate, the state has brought in $70.5 billion since 2011, the report stated.

Bruce Rauner, the Republican candidate for governor, said on Sept. 30, one way to reform the financial situation is overhauling the corporate tax code.

“We have a lot of corporate welfare and loop holes that we should close,” Rauner said. “Special deals for certain corporations that are politically connected.”

Long also touched on corporate loopholes, but had a different view of them.

“There is legislation every year that says we need to close these loop holes,” Long said. “But they aren’t really loop holes. They are incentives, and when you start closing those, you get the perception of being an unfriendly state to business.”

The state wants to attract more businesses and to do so, it needs to figure what the tax rate will be, Long said.

“Our taxes were at one level, then they went up. Now they may go back down, or may keep it the same, or may make it permanent, and all that uncertainty is not good for the business environment,” Long said.

The responsibility of solving Illinois’ tax rate falls squarely on the state legislatures shoulders, Long said. They are the ones who will need to agree on a budget.

“We are at a crossroads in terms of how we are going to handle that situation,” he said. “Some factions want to make it permanent other say we should keep it temporary and we will work for our issues and then sometime in the future we will lower it.”