Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes leaving Pritzker administration

Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes is out of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration.

At an unrelated press conference Thursday morning, Pritzker thanked Hynes for his time as the deputy governor of budget and economy, calling him a “steady first mate to steer our fiscal ship out of decades of turbulent waters.”

“... I knew that I needed his unparalleled knowledge of the state budget, and his well deserved reputation as a fiscally responsible leader and, as you can tell, he’s delivered,” Pritzker said.

Hynes will be replaced by former state Sen. Andy Manar, whom the governor said will “provide immeasurably important perspective.”

A former state comptroller, Hynes said he had no intention of going back into government but joined Pritzker’s team in part because of his “incredible respect” for the governor.

“I also from a personal standpoint felt that there was some unfinished business that the state, you know, still had a lot of financial problems and I could offer something to that,” Hynes said. “... I still want to serve in some capacity on a volunteer basis, but professionally, I’ll be going back to the private sector.”