Moody's Ratings

Chicago’s triple-notch credit downgrade

07/18/2013
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...

TAGS: pensions, Rahm Emanuel

Moody’s: Illinois 2011 unfunded liability jumps by 65 percent

By Chris Andriesen
06/28/2013
by Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner Moody’s Investors Service reported that Illinois’ true unfunded pension liability in fiscal year 2011 was nearly 65% higher than the state’s official estimate. In its report titled “Adjusted Pension Liability Medians for U.S. States,” Moody’s calculated the unfunded liabilities for Illinois’ three largest state-run pension plans at $133 billion, compared...

Capitol Updates: Special session

By Jane McEnaney
06/19/2013
In early June, Gov. Pat Quinn called lawmakers to return to Springfield on June 19 for a one-day special session on pension reform. This came in the wake of yet another downgrade of Illinois’ credit as a result of inaction on pension reform when the legislative session adjourned on May 31. Our most recent knocks from Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings  mark Illinois’ 12th...

Illinois pension debt to double as new Moody’s methodology kicks in

06/17/2013
It’s taken as fact that Illinois’ five state-run pension systems have a $100 billion funding shortfall. That’s what the official reports say. But all that’s about to change. Moody’s Investors Service is making good on its promise to evaluate state pension plans on more realistic assumptions. The rating agency has long critiqued the pension funds’...

TAGS: credit rating, pensions

Illinois’ supersized pension problem

By Ted Dabrowski
06/13/2013
Illinois’ pension problem dwarfs the retirement problems in all other states. Officially, the underfunding of the five state-run pension systems total $100 billion. But when more realistic assumptions are used, the shortfall exceeds $200 billion. Without real pension reform, every Illinois household is on the hook for more than $40,000 in additional taxes just to cover...

Fitch downgrades Illinois after lawmakers fail to pass pension reform

06/03/2013
by Ted Dabrowski Fitch Ratings downgraded Illinois’ credit rating to “A-” from “A” after the General Assembly failed to move forward on pension reform before the end of the spring legislative session. In its statement announcing the downgrade, Fitch called Illinois’ pension liability “unsustainable” and said it was concerned about the state being able to...

Capitol Updates: May 31

By Jane McEnaney
05/31/2013
Health care  On Memorial Day, the Illinois General Assembly passed Senate Bill 26, which drastically expands the state’s Medicaid program and is one of the key provisions of implementing ObamaCare. During yesterday’s Senate floor debate, state Sen. Heather Steans, D-Chicago, presented the bill that appropriates the funds for fiscal year 2014’s human services budget. Steans admitted that the...

Moody’s warns Illinois credit rating could fall without pension reform

05/31/2013
In what’s become a habit for Moody’s Investors Service, the credit rating agency warned today that Illinois faces more credit downgrades if it fails once again to reform its state-run pension systems. The state already has the lowest credit rating in the nation. This means Illinois pays more to borrow money than any other state. But what’s...

CTBA’s pension plan doesn’t fix the problem

By Jonathan Ingram
05/22/2013
Back in January, Ralph Martire of the union-backed Center for Tax and Budget Accountability proposedwhat he called a “solution” for Illinois’ pension crisis. This plan has been getting more attention lately. But before embracing it, lawmakers should ask: does this plan really solve the problem? After all, Martire’s plan is to leave the broken pension system untouched –...

TAGS: Senate Bill 1

Illinois will face future credit downgrades if it expands Medicaid

05/03/2013
Jonathan Ingram There are plenty of reasons to oppose trapping more Illinoisans in a broken Medicaid program, but Moody’s Investors Services has given the state one more: expanding Medicaid will lead to credit downgrades. Remember: Illinois already has the worst credit rating in the nation. Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings have downgraded the state 11 times since Gov. Pat...
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Who Lives Below the Poverty Line in Illinois? Family Structure and Education Mark the Highest Risk

A new Illinois Policy Institute analysis finds that adults with no spouse and living with children are most likely to live below the poverty line. Education matters just as much.

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Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

By Paul Kersey
06/19/2014

CBS Chicago: Illinois’ highest-paid superintendent receives $400K per year to oversee 1,200 students

By Ted Dabrowski
05/02/2016