The problem Illinois has the worst-funded pension systems in the nation. The structure of Illinois’ current defined benefit system coupled with the political unwillingness to reform has left the state’s pension systems in danger of running completely dry. Even the head of the Illinois Teachers’ Retirement System, or TRS, Dick Ingram, said the fund may...

Illinois Speaker Michael Madigan’s pension proposal (House Amendment #1 to Senate Bill 1) perpetuates Illinois’ crisis. The plan locks in the unmanageable defined benefit plan, guarantees the crowd out of core government services and continues the irresponsible pension payment ramp. Madigan’s plan keeps politicians in control of state employee pensions. By failing to get rid of...

Illinois is in crisis. According to official government numbers, Illinois has an unfunded pension liability of $96 billion – the worst in the nation. This heavy debt burden, combined with the state’s culture of out-of-control, wasteful spending, has driven the state into an economic death spiral. Illinois cannot be economically prosperous until real pension reform...

The only way to end Illinois’ pension crisis is to empower government workers by transitioning benefits for all future work to a defined contribution system.

Have you ever wondered what investments politicians have made using teachers’ retirement savings? If you haven’t, you should be interested.

Illinois Policy Institute Executive Vice President, Kristina Rasmussen, appeared on ABC 20 to discuss the Auditor General’s report, which found that Illinois’ unfunded pension liability grew nearly $12 billion in fiscal year 2012. The unfunded liability in the state’s retirement systems has ballooned by nearly $12 billion in the last budget year. That’s according to...

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.

State Rep. Elaine Nekritz, state Rep. Daniel Biss and several of their rank-and-file colleagues recently unveiled a new pension reform proposal. These lawmakers should be commended for stepping forward with a plan, rather than waiting on their political leaders to get around to fixing the problem. Unfortunately, the Nekritz-Biss plan falls short of fixing the...

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...