Seven former local officials across Rock Island County are taking home pensions in excess of $100,000 a year. And nearly a dozen have already collected $1 million over the course of their retirements.
Avenues for state oversight for cities with financial difficulties have limited utility in the face of massive pension debt and have almost never been invoked since Springfield passed them into law in 1990.
In the midst of Chicago’s $36 billion pension crisis, former city officials are seeing big payouts.
Severely underwater public safety pensions have already derailed the finances of other municipalities, such as Harvey and North Chicago.
Illinois’ pension laws are forcing the city of Harvey to pay its creditors through short-term negotiated agreements just to meet payroll.
Illinois’ fiscal year 2019 spending plan includes reforms to discourage some irresponsible spending by local governments.
Central Falls, Rhode Island, filed for bankruptcy largely because of pension debt. If Illinois municipalities can’t meet or lower their pension obligations, they too could face fiscal collapse.
A criminal sexual assault conviction will not interfere with a retired suburban deputy police chief’s $84,000 annual pension.
Under Illinois law, towns that miss required pension contributions risk state intervention. In 2016, Round Lake Park paid less than 40 percent of its required pension contribution.
Police, firemen and other government workers will be laid off to cover pension costs.
The ruling will likely mean higher taxes for Chicagoans.
Most of the proceeds from the sale of Alton's sewer system and water treatment plant would go toward combined police and fire pension debt of more than $113 million.
Village officials are trying to control expenses by cutting staff as growing pension costs continue to gobble up local tax dollars.
The defined-benefit pension system threatens the retirement security of government workers, as well as the pocketbooks of overburdened taxpayers.