Totaling the unsustainable tax increases and windfall revenue during Pritzker Administration – Wirepoints
May 26, 2026
23 Comments
With $162 billion more from taxpayers, couldn’t you deliver a few bond upgrades, too
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A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.
The pension costs have put Chicago bonds in the junk status. Thank you, public sector greed.
Ok just to make this clear. I worked 30 years at CPD and got a pension. This is after I put 9.5% of my paycheck in every two weeks and the city added 4.5 percent Emmanuel stole 60 million after Daley the second stole 60 Million from ourfund and the firefighters. In fact the firefighter pension is still funded at about twenty percent of what it should be. So when people talk about public sector workers greed you should be talking about political malfeasance
You worked hard for your pension and earned every cent. Thank you for your service. It’s a shame that losers like leaving are so jealous that they spew such garbage. He has a family member that retired with a nice pension and it makes him so angry that he doesn’t. Truly sad that he can’t move on from his jealousy but some people can’t help themselves.
Pensioner, Only 9.5%?!
Every 2 weeks I save 15% pretax for my 401K AND the Feds take 6.2% of my paycheck for FICA/Social Security.
I can’t collect 100% of my Social Security until I’m 70yo.
Quit your WHINING!!
He wasn’t whining but rather explaining to the crowd jealous of public pensions that he paid his share as agreed upon. He worked his years of service as agreed upon. The debt from pensions didn’t come from the worker but the politicians that didn’t properly fund them. Someone isn’t greedy because they expect to be paid what they were contractually promised. Nothing but jealousy.
“You only pay 9.5% while I pay 15%. You get to retire earlier than me. It’s not fair. Boo hoo hooo hoooooo.”
If only everyone had been genius enough to take a public sector job. Then nobody would be jealous. Everyone could retire comfortably knowing the students taught by teacher union members would be there to pay for it all. A dream world brought to you by the public unions.
The end is near.
Did you ever get out of your car?
Isn’t Chicago already in a financial situation to warrant junk bond status? I read that the reason Moody’s previously rated Chicago’s bond status as junk was primarily due to massive, unfunded pension liabilities and limitations on Chicago’s ability to cut pension costs. Those two components are still in place today. Did the bond rating agencies move the goalposts?
Chicago still has many things available to tax. Amazon et al delivery tax for one that the State is eyeing as well, social media tax, securities trade taxes, real estate transactions tax so on and so forth, The list it seems is endless and I assume those ratings agencies consider those items.
100 percent RB. The ratings agencies know that bankruptcy is currently not a factor politically speaking and that more taxes can be raised. Until the state elects candidates that promote austerity, the ratings agencies will price in the fact that Springfield would rather allow a tax increase than admit Chicago is a failure and allow it to enter bankruptcy. Look no further than the CTA/RTA bailout. The state isn’t flush with cash but when push came to shove, Springfield stepped up. This behavior is definitely priced into the market.
Chicago’s Ticking Time Bomb
OwO!!
More taxes on the way. Perhaps diverting more funds away from downstate to Chicago. Look at the recent CTA/RTA bailout. The state is broke but they had no problem finding money for a billion dollar bailout. But but but “EvErYoNe WiLl LeAvE”. lol
And the bond rating agencies know that some of these require state approval or are unconstitutional. The agencies also know that some of these taxes are just going to drive people and businesses away.
Well for one thing I think on the Amazon delivery tax the state would join in and share in the booty as the issue has already been brought up at the state legislature and as shown by the recent transit tax the state is more than willing to approve and share Chicago’s tax burdens with the rest of the state. Naturally some businesses will move but I have been hearing this all my life up into my late 70s meaning I have been hearing it a long time yet Illinois continues rolling along. I wish the people would wake up… Read more »
“Municipal Market Analytics is a firm that’s been bullish on Chicago in recent years.” This firm should be reported to the SEC. Matt Fabian spins fables of the Climate Religion to try and obfuscate the utter lack of any real foundation for MMA’s irrational exuberance over Chicago’s debt. Moody’s is another firm whose bright lights have sung the praises of every budget gimmick that Mayor Cliff Notes and his predecessors employed to hide the true size of the financial mess that Chicago became over a decade ago. At least Moody’s had the ‘Junk’ rating right a few years ago. Based… Read more »
The next Democrat campaigning for the mayor’s job in Chicago should use the campaign slogan, “I’ll drive Chicago into the ground like a tent peg!”
I’ve got his campaign song, borrowed and altered from Groucho Marx: “The last man nearly ruined this place, He didn’t know what to do with it. If you think this city’s bad off now, Just wait ’till I get through with it.” “The budget is low on dough; The last man went and flew with it. If you think we’re short of money now Just wait ’till I get through with it.” “The city’s taxes must be fixed, And I know what to do with it, If you think you’re paying too much now, Just wait ’till I get through… Read more »
Does it really matter at this point? It’s like adding a few stones to the Titanic as it breaks apart and sinks.
Pushing higher taxes onto future generations follows the old “don’t tax you and don’t tax me, let’s tax the man behind the tree” that has now expanded to feeding off the young. Who would have thought it would get this bad then again who would have thought people like Johnson would get elected?
“Another drop in Chicago’s bond rating may not mean much to the current generation of Chicago taxpayers. But it will mean plenty to their children and grandchildren.”
Fran Spielman still doesn’t get it. This isn’t a future problem; this is a now problem.
OMG, I never realized Matt Fabian says such things. He’s the supposed bond expert quoted here who journalists routinely quote. Here, he says: “As the lake rises, Chicago will need to construct infrastructure to keep the lake out of Chicago. That’s won’t be an optional thing over time as the federal government pushes policy responsibilities down to the states and the cities.” Whether “climate change” causes high or low water levels on Lake Michigan bounces up and down as rapidly as the lake level. See our article on that here: https://wirepoints.org/lake-michigan-water-levels-have-dropped-to-near-normal-so-yet-another-climate-explanation-emerges-wirepoints/. Currently, lake levels are well below historical averages and… Read more »
Not quite sure what to make of that statement?
I’m saying Fabian is repeating global warming quackery. First the climate alarmists said the lake was drying up, then they blamed warming for high water levels. Today, lake levels are well below average.
Disappointing on Fabian. Lake Michigan water levels have always been erratic. In the 80s the levels were extremely high and no one was screaming about the sky falling. On the flip side, if he is right, Chicago can become the next Venice. Maybe tourists will come back.
Chicago should get ahead of the game and pass the Gondola tax now.
Wait until they start pumping water out of it all the way to the Kane County portion of Joliet, with New Lenox, Shorewood, etc each getting their share along the way.