Illinois should create a state agency to oversee early education instead of relying on multiple agencies steering different programs with little accountability or transparency, according to a draft recommendation from a statewide commission. It should also spend almost seven times the amount it does on early childhood education, the group said, an ambitious goal in a budget year marked by a pandemic, rising unemployment, and the defeat of a graduated income tax proposal aimed at easing Illinois' chronic budget crunch. Subscribe Two of the commission's co-chairs, state Senator Andy Manar and advocate George Davis, previewed the recommendations Thursday night in a town hall for providers, advocates and policymakers. Currently, Illinois spends about $1.9 billion on early education programs, including state-funded preschool, child care subsidies for low-income working parents, and initiatives for infants and toddlers. Chicago also has fueled its universal prekindergarten expansion with a chunk of those dollars.