Illinois has the nation’s worst-funded pensions. Each Illinois household can expect to pay more than $40,000 in additional taxes to cover the pension shortfall if no reforms are passed. The size of the pension crisis demands that state lawmakers pass the boldest reforms in the country. Fortunately, Illinois lawmakers can look to the examples other states have...
By Benjamin VanMetre
07/19/2013
The Institute of Government and Public Affairs, or IGPA, a university-based research organization, recently developed a pension plan for Illinois. That plan was presented at a pension conference committee hearing earlier this month. But it’s not the type of reform Illinois’ needs. The IGPA plan fails to solve Illinois’ pension problem. Here are five reasons...
By John Klingner
07/01/2013
Employee contributions to the State University Retirement System, or SURS, have gone up by 16 percent since 1998. During the same time period, taxpayer contributions to university worker retirements increased by 333 percent. In 2012 alone, Illinois taxpayers contributed $730 million more to SURS than university employees did. And the disparity between taxpayer and employee...
By Benjamin VanMetre
06/20/2013
A six-point pension plan created by the Institute of Government and Public Affairs, or IGPA, fails to solve Illinois’ pension problem. That’s because the plan, Senate Bill 2591, maintains the state’s unmanageable defined benefit plan for current employees. It requires all new employees to participate in a hybrid defined benefit and defined contribution pension plan, and...
By Chris Andriesen
06/16/2013
State Reps. Tom Morrison (R-Palatine) and Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton) have proposed House Bill 3303, which is based the Institute’s pension reform plan. State Sen. Jim Oberweis (R-Sugar Grove) introduced a floor amendment to Senate Bill 2026, which is identical to House Bill 3303. The problem Illinois has the nation’s worst-funded pension systems. The unfunded liability currently stands at more...
By Benjamin VanMetre
06/14/2013
The Illinois General Assembly is gearing up for a special session to discuss pensions next week because of lawmakers’ reform inaction during the recent spring session, which resulted in back-to-back credit rating downgrades. The debate during session will likely be over which of two plans will solve Illinois’ crisis – House Speaker Mike Madigan’s proposal or the one...
Like many, we are disappointed that pension reform was not enacted during the spring legislative session. But make no mistake: the Madigan and Cullerton pension proposals were not pension reform. Taxpayers should be relieved they did not pass. Right now, the job of Illinois government is to provide for the well-being of all the people....
By Benjamin VanMetre
05/30/2013
A “cost shift” pension plan was introduced today, Senate Bill 1687 Amendment #2, for the State Universities Retirement System, or SURS. Here are the ins and outs of the plan: What the cost shift does: A significant driver of Illinois’ $97 billion pension crisis is the fact that the state makes pension contributions to SURS...
By Benjamin VanMetre
05/22/2013
Even with record revenues, Illinois is suffering
TAGS: budget
This was the running theme during Illinois' recent lame duck session: Pass anything.
