-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
Moody’s Investors Service has updated its state-by-state pension liability report and if there’s one key takeaway, it’s that Illinois is the nation’s extreme outlier when it comes to pension shortfalls.
In a recent talk at Chicago’s City Club, Senator Steans managed to endorse most every piece of double talk, gimmickry and evasion of responsibility we’ve seen on pensions from the Illinois General Assembly.
That’s the bottom line of the latest annual look at the conditions of the government retirement systems in the 50 states by Moody’s Investors Service. Illinois’ adjusted net pension liability as of June 30, 2018, stood at a cool $240.8 billion. That’s more than any other state, with California coming in second—its population is more than three times ours—at $230.8 billion and Texas coming in third at $132.8 billion.
The committee already rejected one of the most obviously needed reforms — a prohibition on lawmakers running tax appeal businesses.
There’s nothing wrong with putting a casino in Chicago. But counting on it, as Lightfoot put it in last month’s speech, as “a structural solution to address long-term problems”? That’s as short-sighted as playing the slots to pay your bills.
Jeff Carter: Remember the Facebook status on relationships, “It’s Complicated”? That’s the status of my relationship with the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois.
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