-- 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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Not mentioned here is the dismal state of funding for Chicago’s police pension. If there is an economic downturn look for a lot of retirees to take a shave.
They wont, the taxpayers will. The voters of the state enshrined it in the constitution with Amendment 1. This is only the first installment of rising taxes and the outflow of residents from the city and state.
Remember, Amendment 1 just barely passed with slightly over 50% of the vote. It took weeks to get the final vote tally because it was so close.