Play money: Former Park District of Highland Park employees taking home 6-figure pensions

By Austin Berg

08/16/2018

More than a dozen city and park district retirees in Highland Park have received more than $1 million in pension benefits each.

TAGS: 401(k), Highland Park, IMRF: Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, municipal pensions, pensions, property taxes, taxes

20 municipal retirees in Peoria County are pension millionaires

By Vincent Caruso

08/16/2018

The average lifetime pension benefit among the county’s 20 highest-earning municipal retirees is more than $1.2 million, while their average total retirement contribution is less than $75,000.

TAGS: 401(k), municipal pensions, pensions, peoria, property taxes, taxes

Retiring as early as age 50, Springfield municipal pensioners bank over $1M

By Joe Kaiser

08/13/2018

Among the 23 former city of Springfield employees who retired at age 50, five have accumulated more than $1 million in pension benefits.

TAGS: IMRF: Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, municipal pensions, pensions, property taxes, Springfield

Shell game: Chicago considers plan to borrow $10B to pay off pension debt

By Adam Schuster

08/09/2018

Previous pension obligation bonds in Illinois have increased costs to taxpayers and done nothing to solve the fiscal challenges created by the pension system.

TAGS: Chicago, Chicago City Council, municipal pensions, pensions, Rahm Emanuel

Illinois state Sen. Dale Fowler pushes bill to undo ‘pension spiking’ restrictions

By Adam Schuster

08/09/2018

Senate Bill 3622 would reverse recently passed restrictions on pension spiking, raising the cap on end-of-career salary increases to 6 percent from 3 percent.

TAGS: Dale Fowler, IEA-NEA: Illinois Education Association, municipal pensions, pensions, spiking

St. Clair County property taxes nearly doubled over last 20 years

By Vincent Caruso

08/08/2018

Property taxpayers in St. Clair County have seen home values swamped by property taxes over the past 20 years.

TAGS: Belleville, municipal pensions, pensions, property taxes, St. Clair County, taxes

Pair of Des Plaines park district retirees have taken home $1M each in pension benefits

By Joe Kaiser

08/07/2018

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.

TAGS: Des Plaines, IMRF: Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, municipal pensions, pensions, property taxes, taxes

Nearly 100 Lake County municipal retirees are pension millionaires

By Austin Berg

08/07/2018

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.

TAGS: 401(k), IMRF: Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, Lake County, municipal pensions, pension guarantee, pensions, police, property taxes, taxes

Why your property tax bill is so high, and how to fix it

By Austin Berg

08/02/2018

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.

TAGS: IMRF: Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, municipal pensions, pensions, property taxes, real estate

Ankle breaker: Dwyane Wade’s property taxes total nearly half home’s value over past 10 years

By Chena Underhill

07/31/2018

Dwyane Wade’s Matteson home has been on the market since May. At its current 5 percent effective property tax rate, the buyer would pay for it again in property taxes within 20 years.

TAGS: municipal pensions, pensions, property taxes, taxes