Scott Reeder
Journalist in Residence 

Organized labor – government unions in particular – played a decisive role in helping Democrats gain supermajority status in both houses.

Take a look at how much these unions gave Illinois legislative candidates during this election cycle:

• American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees: $645,787
• Illinois Federation of Teachers: $1,098,219
• Illinois Education Association: $1,080,700
• Service Employees International Union: $919,598
  

That money didn’t flow out of the goodness of their hearts. It was part of a hard-nosed political calculation designed to ensure taxpayers – rather than union members – shoulder the cost of the unfunded pension liabilities.

And those liabilities are enormous.

Under the new accounting standards coming into play next year, Illinois will have an unfunded pension liability of more than $200 billion next year.

At the end of the day, for the unions, it’s all about finding a way for someone – other than their members – to pay for the unfunded pension liability.