Virtually every decision lawmakers make in Springfield this spring session will be done with the shadow of the state's deficit looming overhead. The state began this fiscal year $3.7 billion in the hole. Poor revenue performance -- tax receipts this fiscal year are approximately 11.4 percent lower than expected -- and increased demand for state services added an additional $2 billion onto that total. Next year, the state will have to catch up on 2010 payments, pay off $3.4 billion for debt service on pension notes, and replace funding from the retiring stimulus program ($2 billion) and other expiring one-time revenues. They also have to conduct that little task of building a fair and sustainable budget that adequately covers Illinois' annual obligations for 2011. The financial situation has become so unwieldy that not only has the state has fallen far behind on paying its bills, officials are contemplating more deep budget cuts for next year.

Since the legislature went back to Springfield, there's been a flood of articles documenting the mounting challenges that schools, providers, and residents face across the state. Reading through this most recent round of reports, you can almost feel the state buckling under the pressure:

Education: Facilities at all levels are starting to feel the pinch. Universities and colleges are owed $735 million in state payments, which has forced officials at some Illinois campuses to implement unpaid furlough days, freeze hiring, and make other cuts. Yesterday, the Senate Executive Committee passed a bill that will allow struggling schools to borrow (with interest) up to 75 percent of their payroll. Lawmakers are also looking to cut some aid and scholarship programs. In the meantime, the University of Illinois is asking alumni to write or call lawmakers asking for the state's promised appropriation. If no solution is developed, Illinois Board of Higher Ed Director Judy Erwin warns that some schools may shut down at the end of the semester.

Elementary and secondary institutions aren't faring much better. The state is approximately $650 million behind in payments to K-12 schools and is considering reducing education funding by 10 percent next year, which will hit low-income schools harder than wealthier ones. The budget instability had already led some districts to take out loans to cover costs. Without significant revenue enhancements, we can expect administrators to fire teachers and reduce programming next year as well, which David Ormsby details here. Moreover, kids won't be able to check out books to educate themselves, thanks to a big cut in funding for library organizations across Illinois.

Human Services: As was the case last year, the state is skimping on payments for social service providers that care for the state's most vulnerable citizens, forcing providers to prepare for the worst. Officials at Williamson County's Early Childhood Cooperative in southern Illinois, for example, are already planning to send layoff notices to its 41 employees in the next few weeks because reimbursements have not been allocated. And try to stay healthy for the next few months if you rely on public health programs in the Land of Lincoln. The Department of Healthcare and Family Services pits the state's existing Medicaid liabilities at $663 million, despite taking in billions of dollars from the Recovery Act. That means safety net hospitals are operating on meager budgets, pushing back capital improvements and trimming salaries. Illinois Medicaid director Theresa Eagleson has already ruled out improving dental services for the state's poor, as well. And programs for AIDS patients are being slashed, despite objections from certain lawmakers in the Capitol.

What else is struggling? The Regional Transportation Authority is owed $250 million and could cut transit service at any point. Funding for probation services could dry up. A smattering of state lawmakers can't even make rent or health care payments. And then there is the little issue of the state's unfunded pension liability, which is the largest in the country.

Illinois is truly on the verge of collapse. The time for action has long passed.