“Cities are being forced to choose: Do they short pensions or do they fire public safety workers” – Ted on WTAD News Round Table

Will Illinois cities be forced to choose between making pension payments and ensuring the safety of their citizens? That was the question Quaid asked Ted this morning on the WTAD News Round Table.

Harvey and North Chicago were the first two cities to fall victim to the state comptroller confiscating part of their tax revenue to pay for failing pension funds. Now East St. Louis could be the third Illinois municipality to have part of the city budget intercepted to pay for pensions, and not city services.

Interview starts at 8:00

 

Read more about the intercept situation in East St. Louis and the broader downstate crisis:

21 Comments
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Poor Taxpayer
4 years ago

Solve the Pension Crisis (it is a CRISIS) with a U Haul.
Illinois is a goner, burnt toast. It will never solve the problem and it will only get much, much worse.
The Greed of the government employee is over whelming.
They all move to Florida and buy expensive homes, expensive cars and go out to dinner every night on the backs of Illinois Taxpayers.
Cops, Teachers, and Firemen get over $100,000 per year with 3% annual increases after 20 years of on the job (note I did not say working).
Run for your economic life.

Erik
4 years ago

Government Employees Think People Hate Them. Increasingly, They’re Right

https://reason.com/2019/09/19/government-employees-think-people-hate-them-increasingly-theyre-right/

This is the other fruit the corrupt union/politicos have wrought. It’s Reason.com, so take it with a grain of salt, but I expect this kind of drumbeat to get louder as as we move towards fiscal calamity.

Poor Taxpayer
4 years ago

There is NO HOPE FOR ILLINOIS. The only hope is a U HAUL.
Run for your economic life. Illinois is Toast, a goner, DOA.

DOUG
4 years ago

When the Feds step in and the rest of the country asked to bail out the Chicago Mafia and Illinois Union Thugs, Illinois must lose its Statehood Charter and be relegated to Territory Status like Puerto Rico.

debtsor
4 years ago
Reply to  DOUG

I’d love to see the state ‘occupied’ by the federal government. I’d love to fight the ‘resistance’. I’d be a federal sympathizer and I’d spy of my fellow citizens and rat them all out to the feds and I’d be proud of my service to my country.

Illinois Entrepreneur
4 years ago
Reply to  debtsor

Love it! “Debtsor’s Underground Railroad for Illinois Businessmen”

joe blow
4 years ago
Reply to  DOUG

the feds are NEVER going to step in… what senator in their right mind would vote for that? here’s a hint (only ones from Illinois)

Admin
4 years ago
Reply to  joe blow

It’s a pretty small number of states where the problems are concentrated that could make a case for a bailout NJ, IL, CT, KY, and eventually CA and MA. That’s a lot of US reps, and they could pick up some more, but you are right about the Senate. Won’t happen. I could foresee, however, a bankruptcy-for-states bill.

debtsor
4 years ago
Reply to  Mark Glennon

Congress just passed some bankruptcy bills for the first time in 13 years. small business chapter 11, a veterans bill, and another one. Nothing too significant. Good luck trying to get them to pass a Chapter 9 for states or even allow student loans to be discharged. It might be another 15 years before they pass another bankruptcy bill.

DantheMan
4 years ago

Public revenue comes from taxes. If a city is not allowed bankruptcy, or if it continually delays seeking bankruptcy, problems are ignored or worsen, and subsequently the quality of life decreases for residents and businesses. Simultaneously, taxes are raised. Residents leave, businesses close, and the tax base deteriorates. If this continues for very long, by the time bankruptcy occurs, it’s like putting lipstick on a pig. The taxpayers that left aren’t coming back and the ones that stayed are probably just waiting for their opportunity to leave.

debtsor
4 years ago
Reply to  DantheMan

Yes. And yet, that is exactly what will happen. We live in IL. Don’t expect rational decisions from our government. Our legislature just passed a bill that said fetuses, up until the moment of birth, have no independent rights. The one ultra liberal Rabbi representative in the north suburbs of Chicago – who chose to abstain from taking a vote on that bill – is currently being primaried – BY HIS OWN PARTY because he is not liberal enough.

If you expect our delusional state to suddenly come to its senses about finances, well, then, …..hahahhahahhaa

NB-Chicago
4 years ago

Ted, great interview. You said bankruptcy for Harvey and East St Louis it’s to late but for a city like Peoria bankruptcy would be viable solution. What makes it to late for a Harvey? No assets left, Harvey would be an asset-less bankruptcy ?

debtsor
4 years ago
Reply to  NB-Chicago

Its never too late for bankruptcy. Bk is usually the last move when it should be the first.

4 years ago
Reply to  NB-Chicago

NB, please read this piece if you didn’t see it when we put it up. https://wirepoints.org/southland-struggles-under-springfields-continuing-neglect/

It’s about how low home prices in many parts of Harvey have dropped. $2k. $5k. $7k. So much of Harvey is beyond repair. It probably is an asset-less bankruptcy. Sure they can go bankrupt and negotiate down some of the debts – just think it might be too late to save Harvey.

Freddy
4 years ago
Reply to  Ted Dabrowski

Ted- With as bad it is in Harvey the school districts are still flourishing. There are 2 districts in Harvey. In dist 152 the super makes $222K and in West Harvey-Dixmoor 147 the super makes $195K. I’ll bet that no one took pay cuts.The contracts will still include raise after raise. There is still pension spiking/raises/bonus’/Cadillac healthcare/etc going on.This is why tax’s are so high there. These and other schools should be consolidated ASAP which would help the entire area there and around the state. If I’m not mistaken total public education costs in Illinois are approaching $30 Billion which… Read more »

NB-Chicago
4 years ago
Reply to  Ted Dabrowski

So, point being the pols have already written off the Harveys of Illinois, because theres no assets left to tax. But will care when a bigger towns with accets like Peoria falls, because want to tap those assets/real estate

Illinois Entrepreneur
4 years ago

Usually, the public unions will win every time, hands down.

Our politicians are losers who care more about their own paycheck, pension and benefits more than the taxpayers.

EVERYTHING is a referendum on how the public unions will react and whether that affects Democrats’ ability to retain power.

But the unions are paid via employee dues. Employee dues rise and fall based on the number of employees employed. If everyone is laid off, the union doesnt make enough money. Without enough money, the unions can’t pay off the democrats.

Quite the quandary.

riverbender
4 years ago

I agree with all you say. One thing though regarding our politicians being losers; remember they are winners on election day. They know how to obtain the votes they need to get in, they know how to spike their pensions and they know how to get a State job after leaving elected office to get another pension as well. While I reflect on that I seem to remember Madigan’s daughter making a comment to the effect that politics in Illinois is Hollywood for the ones without the looks to make it in Hollywood.To these politicians we are the losers and… Read more »

debtsor
4 years ago
Reply to  riverbender

It is true, there are a lot of political dynasties, with families who have nearly all of their members employed in some level of government. Those families tend to have lake houses in MI or WI too, and large pensions too, and nice cars. They’re often the richest guys on their block in middle class neighborhoods.

Connie
4 years ago

I am a public employee who refuses to pay a dime to the unions because they are an obstacle to reforming pensions. Public employees no longer have to pay union dues.

Adam
4 years ago

Ted, you are the man.

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