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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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Destined to fail, the numbers just do not even come close to funding the gaping money hole in the pension system.
I say this whole issue is proof positive that it pays to be wary of what results when fuzzy math is involved to create a desired outcome. Such agreements require lots of hubris, eye winking and finger crossing when simple math suggests it’s likely folly. You’ll get a house built on shifting sand most of the time.
Yep, that’s what happens when you have the awful combination of greedy pols with little or no financial acumen making major financial decisions. It’s almost as if the voters say “let’s pick the worst possible candidate for the job.” However, as you know, the choice is often between the worst and second-worst possible candidates, so the voters lose no matter who they vote for.
Excellent article, what thee say now James and PPF
What do I say about a bunch of tweets? Did you read them? I thought this one was the most interesting. It was from @TexasKrab “Does anyone want to bet they GET some money somehow? Any takers?” I find this one the most real when we look at past behavior around budgets. Unfortunately they never seem to actually cut any spending. Eventually their hand will be forced but in the meantime I expect more budget tricks and more taxes along with some sacrificial layoffs to add to a headline. I then expect most of those laid off to be quietly… Read more »
Yup, Mary Pat makes the case that city pension crisis is only partially due to not funding but also due to over promising compared to national averages. Which blows a hole in rational for HB3657- cop /fire TIER II “fix” that a TIER II pension is somehow inadequate by “safe harbor” standards or some other metric? I assume current Tier II deal is still very generous compared to other plans in big cities nationally, but nobody in gov or press makes the case?
Mary Pat knows numbers and she knows the pension system in Taxistan is a Black Hole that will collapse on itself.
More and more Illinoisans are voting with their feet and PPF and his sidekick James argument that there is plenty of additional tax revenue to grab to fund these golden pensions is laughable!!