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.

Any meaningful property tax relief for Illinoisans means reforming Illinois’ unsustainable public pension system.

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.

Illinois’ pension laws are forcing the city of Harvey to pay its creditors through short-term negotiated agreements just to meet payroll.

The new law is a step toward more fairness within Illinois’ police pension system, while offering certain police officers more control over their retirements.

In 2010, the unfunded debt related to pensions and retiree health care costs for local and state government workers across Illinois was $203 billion, the equivalent of more than $43,000 per household. In just six years, the total debt Illinois households are on the hook for has jumped to $56,000, or 31 percent. That’s a $13,000 increase for each household. Total unfunded debt for state and local governments in Illinois now totals $267 billion.