Pension funds expected rates of return: Biggest lie in global finance

03/31/2013

For governments like the ones in Stockton and Illinois, government worker pension plans need ambitious investment returns of nearly 8 percent year in and year out to fund the overly generous benefits officials have handed out

TAGS: pensions

The real “State of the State”

By Chris Andriesen

01/31/2013

Facts you won't hear during Gov. Quinn's State of the State 2013 address

TAGS: State of the State

Fitch warnings don’t mean kick the can down the road

01/11/2013

Illinois’ credit rating received a warning today from Fitch Ratings. What Fitch cited as the “ongoing inability of the state to address its large and growing unfunded pension liability” means a rating downgrade is likely unless reforms are passed within six months. That warning is just another whack for a state that already has been downgraded...

Illinois credit downgrade prompts delay of bond sale

12/31/2012

This morning Illinois was forced to delay a $500 million bond sale essentially, borrowing $500 million to finance state government operations. The delay was due to a drop in lender confidence in Illinois credit worthiness.

TAGS: downgrade

Without real reforms, Illinois’ credit downgrades will just keep coming

12/31/2012

On Jan. 25, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services downgraded Illinois' credit to A- from A.

TAGS: downgrade

Fitch warnings don’t mean kick the can down the road

12/31/2012

Illinois credit rating received a warning today from Fitch Ratings. What Fitch cited as the ongoing inability of the state to address its large and growing unfunded pension liability means a rating downgrade is likely unless reforms are passed within s

Nekritz-Biss pension funding guarantee would make pensions a priority over education, health care, public safety

12/31/2012

For years annual pension costs have been crowding out spending on education, health care and public safety. Now, Illinois legislators are looking to lock that in.

TAGS: funding guarantee

When will the whining end and the reforming begin?

12/31/2012

None of the plans Illinois lawmakers are considering will go anywhere near solving the states long-term pension crisis.

Budget and tax year-end review: a recap of the best and worst of 2012

By Benjamin VanMetre

12/22/2012

Unfortunately, 2012 was another dismal year for budget and tax policy in Illinois. It seems that the more things change the more they get worse in this state. But the Illinois Policy Institute is fighting to fix that. We believe that Illinois can once again become a beacon of economic freedom, individual liberty and prosperity....

While Illinois burns, Moody’s threatens next downgrade

By Ted Dabrowski

12/14/2012

As the pension crisis threatens to engulf Illinois, legislators continue to fiddle. It’s no secret that Illinois has the worst-funded state pension systems in the nation. That’s an accepted fact by those on both sides of the aisle. Unfortunately, that fact hasn’t motivated any action from the state’s politicians. Now recent news point to even...

Moody's Ratings

Pension funds expected rates of return: Biggest lie in global finance

The real “State of the State”

Fitch warnings don’t mean kick the can down the road

Illinois credit downgrade prompts delay of bond sale

Without real reforms, Illinois’ credit downgrades will just keep coming

Fitch warnings don’t mean kick the can down the road

Nekritz-Biss pension funding guarantee would make pensions a priority over education, health care, public safety

When will the whining end and the reforming begin?

Budget and tax year-end review: a recap of the best and worst of 2012

While Illinois burns, Moody’s threatens next downgrade

FAQ: How the federal scholarship program would help Illinois students

Report Archive

Diana Graham

Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

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