-- 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.
SIGN UP HERE FOR OUR FREE WIREPOINTS DAILY NEWSLETTER
the editorial board never seems to get it. Property taxes are a competiton between the properties in a given district to pay for those services. There is very little commonality, maybe 15%, outside of your local districts shared by other taxpayers. Paying lower rates in one suburb and much higher in another means nothing. Low tax rates in northern sububs has almost nothing to do with higher rates in southern suburbs. They should at least acknowledge this before revisiting the same tired points they make every six months or so.