-- 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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One can wish for unicorns, over-night beauty, answers to all the world’s mysteries. At the same time, there is reality. The reality is that the grocery tax is an existing tax revenue. If the existing revenue is stopped, there has to be another tax or fee to replace it. No one will feel any change January 1, 2026 if the City continues the tax. If the City doesn’t continue the tax on groceries, in real terms, no one will notice that their $50 grocery bill is $0.50 cents less. The concern at the grocery store isn’t the tax on groceries–it’s… Read more »
Refreshing to hear that. Even though most Chicagoans already know it