-- 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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Hank is right on the downward pressure on home values but if you live in one of the 36 PTELL counties the local governments can still collect the same taxes on what was levied (not billed or collected) the year before and adjust the tax rate to compensate the loss of total EAV. This is why here in Rockford (Winnebago Co.) my tax rate is 14.8363% on 1/3rd value making my tax bill at $6,900 on a $157K value or over 4.5% of total value. The local taxing bodies can not lose but the taxpayers do.
“Combined with the inevitable accelerating path of interest rate increases, limits on mortgage interest and property tax deductions will put downward pressure on house prices, especially in Chicago and Lake County. ” Here’s an idea, stop taking homeowners to the bank with 2+% property taxes. But when the state is living paycheck-to-paycheck and running up more debt, I guess it’s easier to blame someone else… And here’s the money shot: “The Moody’s Analytics U.S. baseline forecast assigns the highest odds of the next recession to mid-2020, and our stress test of state budgets finds that Illinois is among the worst… Read more »