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With an incoming administration likely to be skeptical of increased bailouts, Illinois cities’ will struggle to fund the current level of services, much less meet their required pension payments. And due to a law allowing local pension funds to petition the Illinois Comptroller to intercept local revenues dispersed by the state, some cities have already had their revenues threatened.
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Audio and summary Why the Holdup Using Artificial Intelligence to Cut Illinois Government Costs? – Wirepoints
May 19, 2026
10 Comments
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.
Note to readers from Mark Glennon re: Ukraine
May 6, 2026
4 Comments
Everybody needs a side hustle these days, and mine is Ukraine, where I am now.
Wirepoints’ Mark Glennon on AM560’s Morning Answer – Chicago’s struggling commercial real estate and more
April 22, 2026
5 Comments
Summary and audio linked here.
Since Bankruptcy offers a fresh start, let’s call it progress!
This will never happen because the carnage to government workers and union members would turn them against the Democratic establishment in Illinois. Hell, these people might even vote Republican if something like this happens.
I have an extremely important question re this topic. The Chicagoland and Illinois debt has been widely discussed, but not the unfunded liabilities. Indeed, the unfunded liabilities could be as high as the staggering debt load. Nobody really knows. So, what happens to the unknown cost of unfunded liabilities in a bankruptcy situation?
Phil, we’ve written enormous amount on that. The unfounded pension liabilities are multiples of the bonded debt. In a formal Chapter 9 bankruptcy, technically, all unfunded liabilities are unsecured debt to be cut proportionately with all other unsecured debt. In practice, however, cuts to unfunded liabilities have ended up small, and significantly less that other unfunded debt.
I am not really talking about pension liabilities, but other unfunded liabilities like healthcare. The cost of those liabilities can’t really be determined, so what happens to them.
Good question. They are generally treated like other unsecured pension debt, as I recall from Stockton and Detroit bankruptcies. But I would think that would be up for debate when there’s an ongoing contract like perhaps a collective bargaining agreement. As with pensions, I suspect courts would tend to cut them less. I am not entirely confident about this answer. And per your original point, they are about as big as bonded debt at the state level.
This is not a moot point. The unfunded healthcare liabilities could be staggering across the nation, not just Illinois. The impounding of federal grants is really going to bring this to a head, particularly for sanctuary city type jurisdictions. Indeed, Trump must have Chicago and Illinois in his crosshairs. States simply can’t make it without the federal funds. Have no doubt, many states and large cities are in a world of fiscal hurt, particularly Illinois. These liabilities are also an area of actuarial voodoo type black magic. I know they are big, but how do you restructure a cost that can’t be pinned… Read more »
“It is time to start talking about and researching how restructuring will work.” We think that time was over ten years ago, which is the primaryreason we started Wirepoints. Since then, we’ve written or linked to thousands of articles addressing that. Our leadership has denied and delayed so long, however, that solutions are now limited, if they exist at all. Generally, we think Chapter 9 bankruptcy is a good model, though it perhaps can use changes to fit our circumstances, much like Congress did for Puerto Rico.
Maybe I missed them, but I am not talking about bankruptcy per se, but rather how the restructuring process would actually work. I have no doubt that bankruptcy will happen. Then what? Who will represent the Chicago taxpayers in the land of corruption was my question. Without the proper restructuring, bankruptcy will be a waste of time. The unions won’t roll over easy. I don’t agree about the ten years ago comment. All the talk has been about bankruptcy, not the details of restructuring. Anyway, thanks.
Hooray if they get this done.
Not very likely, but worth a try.
No politician would ever affirmatively suggest bankruptcy. Every new group of elected leaders blames their predecessors and waits for tragedy, drama, or force majeure to act affirmatively to solve a money problem. Common sense isn’t common.
Great article. Restructuring is the only solution. Nothing else will work. NOTHING!!! At some point, the media and population will pick up on this.