Consolidating downstate and suburban police and fire pension systems is a start, but both fixes and Illinois’ pension problems go much deeper.
More than 19,000 Illinois government retirees receive pensions over $100K
The average six-figure retiree contributed just over $160,000 toward their own pension over the course of their career.
6 former library employees have taken home over $1M in pension benefits
Large pension payouts in the face of flat incomes for taxpayers raise questions of fairness.
Southern Illinois municipal pensioners have collected more than $500M in benefits over last 20 years
Despite regional struggles and a shrinking population, taxpayers in southern Illinois have been saddled with rapidly growing pension costs.
Play money: Former Park District of Highland Park employees taking home 6-figure pensions
More than a dozen city and park district retirees in Highland Park have received more than $1 million in pension benefits each.
Retiring as early as age 50, Springfield municipal pensioners bank over $1M
Among the 23 former city of Springfield employees who retired at age 50, five have accumulated more than $1 million in pension benefits.
Pair of Des Plaines park district retirees have taken home $1M each in pension benefits
Active Des Plaines Park District pensioners – including two pension millionaires – have put taxpayers on the hook for more than $7.6 million in pension payouts since 1996.
Nearly 100 Lake County municipal retirees are pension millionaires
Lake County residents pay some of the highest property taxes in the nation – a burden driven by the growth in pension costs over the last 20 years.
Why your property tax bill is so high, and how to fix it
Less than 50 cents of every additional property tax dollar over the last 20 years went to pay for services that raise home values. Instead, the primary driver of the rise in property taxes was pension costs.
Retired Kane County water district employee has banked $3.5M in pension payments
Despite serving one of the most overtaxed parts of the state, a retired Kane County-area water district employee has collected millions in pension payouts over the past 20 years.