-- 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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The probable loss of yet another major corporation, and the powers that be haven’t caught on yet. The business climate in Illinois is toxic and until that improves we can expect businesses as well as citizens to jump the IL border. So far politicians appear to believe lying and putting on a happy face will fool IL citizens. I hope they are wrong, though recent history leads me to believe they aren’t. So sad – Illinois is a wonderful state with bountiful resources and good people most of whom have solid midwestern values. Voting (and not voting) have consequences. Perhaps… Read more »
It’s the recruiting pipeline that’s one of the problem, I’m sure. It’s difficult enough to get people to change jobs mid-career – ask any 45 year old with a mortgage and two kids how eager he or she is to start a new job. And it’s even more difficult to recruit people to move to Chicago, especially when the State of Illinois goes out of its way to alienate half the voting population. There are other blue states that also alienate conservative voters, but California is California, for goodness sakes, and New York is the center of the world, and… Read more »
Here is the good news and bad news about Colorado. The good news is property taxes are approx 0.6% of total value vs almost 4% in Rockford. https://www.tax-rates.org/colorado/property-tax The bad news is home values are high for example Boulder. https://www.redfin.com/city/2025/CO/Boulder/housing-market Home values are high depending on the city but taxes are low. Unless United helps pay for housing and your home value is also high in Chicago it will be difficult to make the transition with now higher interest rates/ The typical bungalow value here is less than half the average there unless you have a two flat. So to… Read more »
Don’t forget lots of housing stock in Chicago is OLD and has LEAD PIPES.
Bj, JB I hope untied airlines leaves you need to learn a lesson. But I forgot Pritzker will come back with a comment more jobs thousands of more companies are coming to Illinois, guess what jelly belly bullshit I call your bluff.