-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
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Well if you’ve gotten through life living off the government, why change
This is the same issue with the ACA income thresholds. Any benefit cliff with excessive “trade imbalances” discourages taxable income and encourages under the tax radar cash. The article example of the single woman losing $600 of medical coverage for a small taxable income increase is a fine example of the problem.
In other news water continues to be wet!