Pension costs are already unraveling the state’s finances. Now it’s the city of Chicago’s turn. The city’s out-of-control pension liabilities and “accelerating budget pressures associated with those liabilities” has resulted in another credit downgrade by Moody’s Investors Service. The national credit rating agency downgraded the city’s nearly $8 billion in general obligation bonds to A3...

It’s official: the city of Detroit is bankrupt. The Detroit News reported that the city filed a petition for bankruptcy protection this afternoon. The city is in a severe economic crisis and simply lacks the ability to raise sufficient taxes to pay its mounting bills. The city’s population fell more than 26% from 2000 to 2012 and...

At a time when the state of Illinois has more than $100 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, more than $6 billion in unpaid bills and is coming off of its 13th credit downgrade since 2009, it might shock Illinoisans to hear that Gov. Quinn is one of the highest-paid governors in the country. Gov. Pat Quinn’s salary is $177,412. According...