Eddie Johnson was fired before his scheduled retirement after he was found asleep behind the wheel. He blamed medication. Video showed him drinking.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker previously floated a pension plan that included pawning-off state assets, taking on more high-interest debt and reducing pension funding before walking back the plan amid criticism. Here’s a real solution.
More than 129,000 Illinois public pensioners will see expected payouts of $1 million or more during retirement.
Across all five state retirement systems, typical career workers pay for about 5% of the cost of their pension benefits. They receive an average of $1.7 million to $3.6 million.
Massive increases in public safety pension contributions have failed to keep Oak Lawn’s credit from being downgraded to junk status. The Chicago suburb’s leaders are fighting cuts and tax increases, which are inevitable without pension reform in Springfield.
Illinois’ pension crisis is the nation’s worst. Maybe that’s because elected officials take a problem they aren’t sure exists, apply a solution they don’t know will work and never determine the cost.
Illinois could give every undergraduate in public college nearly $70k a year if it spent the same 4% of its budget on pensions as it did throughout the 90s, rather than the 25% it spends today.
Illinois has nation’s worst pension debt. Maybe that’s because state lawmakers take a problem they aren’t sure exists, apply a solution they don’t know will work and never determine the cost.
The rapidly increasing cost of pensions is crowding out core government services.
A provision included in the bargaining agreement reached between Chicago and its teachers union will allow teachers to trade up to 244 unused sick days for pension credits – billable to all Illinois taxpayers.
Illinois’ contributions to its pension funds exceeded $10 billion in 2019 for the first time in state history – and it wasn’t nearly enough to keep the state’s pension debt from growing.
Illinois Senate President John Cullerton is championing a bill to merge more than 640 local police and fire pension funds into two investment pools. With lawmakers returning to Springfield for veto session, action on the bill may be near.
After retiring at age 55, the average Chicago teacher just takes five months to get back everything they contributed toward their pension during their career.
If Illinois groups could come together to bring the same enthusiasm and support to a constitutional amendment, the state could fix its pension problem once and for all.