Ten states struggled to pass budgets before the Tuesday deadline, including Illinois. According to the Wall Street Journal, state governments could face partial shutdowns if budgets aren’t created soon.

In Illinois, the new fiscal year has already started with no budget, according to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch article.

The state will ultimately be more than $9 billion in the red for the fiscal year that starts today, Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration says, unless the Legislature provides new revenue. He has warned of potential deep cuts in human services such as day care subsidies and elder care, as well as interruptions in other state…

Of the several so-called czars appointed by the Obama Administration, the most recent appointee seems to be the most controversial. According to the New York Times, the appointee will have the right to review the compensation for the 100 most highly paid employees of private companies and any other executives.

The Treasury Department on Wednesday appointed a well-known Washington lawyer, Kenneth R. Feinberg, to oversee the compensation of employees at the seven companies — the American International Group, Citigroup, Bank of America, General Motors, Chrysler and the financing arms of the two automakers.

He will have broad discretion to set the salaries and bonuses…