-- 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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The largest corruption factor in Illinois is property values being non-uniformly underassessed as a function of bribes or selective enforcement of laws and ordinances. Pritzker’s toilets is textbook example. (It is important to note that Pritzker’s toilets, as well as recently reported federal criminal findings of assessor bribe-taking for assessment reductions, occurred on the watch of Berrios being chief assessor). 1. For each illegally underassessed property, property tax RATES rise. This is a big deal even at small decimal place amounts: 0.0001% on a $300,000 home costs that homeowner $30 per year. But that’s just the beginning of homeowners’ losses… Read more »
I agree but why is it the value of the home or property determines the price you pay for the services rendered? Way too much emphasis is placed properties so a multi-pronged approach is needed to ween taxing bodies off from our homes as ATM machines. Maybe a local 1 to 1.5% county income tax plus maybe looking into bringing back the personal property tax like many states have. County income tax should have a hard cap with any changes need to be done on a referendum. Indiana has done this. All this MUST be done in exchange for lower… Read more »
But don’t dare vote the corrupt out of office