-- 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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My feeling is State Farm is already anticipating this being it is involved in that big expansion in Texas. Soon Bloomington will be in the dumps even more than it is already and it was such a nice town.
When setting premiums and rates, insurance companies do a deep dive into all facets of the topic: vehicle type, gender (BTW, there are two), age (vehicle and driver), mileage, locale, driving history, theft rates, repair costs, etc. Also, credit rating. Why credit rating? Well, someone with an abysmal credit rating may need money badly enough to fall prey to trying to defraud. Didn’t we just witness a tremendous amount of fraud with all the funds flowing out of D.C. (and creating the highest inflation rate in decades)? Insurance companies are in the business of providing a service that clients are… Read more »
Even the Federal Trade Commission, in 2007! Admitted that: “A strong credit history, however, might indicate that a consumer has taken care in managing his or her financial affairs, avoiding loans that might be difficult to repay, avoiding high balances on credit cards, making sure that bills are not misplaced and are paid on time, etc. A consumer who is prudent in financial matters may also be cautious in other matters related to insurance, such as being more likely to put time, effort, and money into things like car and home maintenance, cautious driving habits, etc. An overall inclination to… Read more »
“gender (BTW, there are two)”
You bring up a great point. Has the insurance industry added all the various genders? Is “two-spirit” (Actually saw that on a survey) available? For many years women have paid lower rates than men based on driving history. Can an insurance company refuse your gender of choice? Might be a great way to save some money.
48 other states already have this but we don’t? Who’s been asleep at the wheel? (pun intended).
What was I saying recently about State Farm and NW Arkansas?
Here comes communist Rep. Guzzardi to destroy Illinois’s insurance industry. All because one constituent calls changed its gender and claims they had to pay 20% more. Which we don’t even know if it is true. IL has very large insurance presence here, we are #3 in the country behind TX and WI. Rep. Guzzardi, with his journalism degree from Brown University, just wants to destroy everything. And that’s the problem with these progressive communists, they are too ideological pure to be corrupted. I wish Rep. Guzzardi would just take the insurance company campaign cash and go corrupt like the rest… Read more »
This will result in auto insurers leaving the Illinois market — with high prices and less choice for consumers. Like every other Democrat effort to micro-mis-manage the economy, the Democrats will end up shooting themselves in the dick.
Not just leaving the Illinois market, but moving their headquarters and employees out of state too.