-- 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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Here’s two revenue ideas: 1) Any TIF funds provided for real estate purposes shall create an equity interest in the property developed equal to the TIF funds share of the final cost of creating the property asset; any rents collected from such properties, shall be split equitably among the investors, including the tax payers; and, 2) any tax credits granted to the property shall be amortized over the useful life of the property and shall be reimbursed to the City starting with the third year following the “move-in” of the first tenant by the investors.