The crisis threatens to burden taxpayers with massive, ever-escalating taxes to bail out a system that is not sustainable – government-worker pensions consume a fourth of the state’s budget.

What happens when financial gimmicks win out over real pension reform?

Former Gov. Pat Quinn contributed less than $200,000 to his retirement, but is set to draw more than $2 million in pension benefits over his lifetime.

Baby boomers have saddled young Illinoisans with a grossly unfair burden.

There’s immense pressure on Illinois legislators to pass a pension bill. With the state pension system nearing insolvency and credit agencies warning of further downgrades, the perceived wisdom is that any pension fix, no matter how small, is a “step forward” that must be passed. But when it comes to pension reform in Illinois, that...

The history of state government pensions in Illinois is fairly simple. Politicians discover that pension funds are running a deficit. Those same politicians develop a plan to eliminate the deficit, which typically involves Illinois taxpayers putting in more money. Taxpayers pony up the funds. The deficit, somehow, gets worse. In 1994, the five state-run pension...