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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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Just read this article linked through another source. Great article, interesting points. My favorite quote is: “But what if it’s New Jersey, Illinois, New York City and Philadelphia defaulting in the next recession? These are all high-tax jurisdictions with declining middle-class services. When you toss in another reform since 2008, the restriction of federal income tax deduction for state and local taxes, it seems unlikely that taxpayers and citizens can kick in much to solve the problems; or that elected officials will ask them; or that they will stay put if asked. Their pension funds won’t run out of cash… Read more »