By using unrealistic interest rates for these buyouts, policymakers are concealing just how severe their financial situation is. For a given buyout option, the terms should reflect the true funded status of the pension plan. Applying more realistic interest rates to Illinois’ recent buyout options reveals that their situation is so bad that being completely transparent with beneficiaries would require significantly cutting lump-sums. It is not surprising that policymakers have decided to go with less honest interest rates