-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
“Part of it is that there are fewer students. Part of it is that people think that maybe college is getting too expensive and they can achieve their goals more cheaply. Within Illinois, I think those same demographics hold,” economics professor Scott Hegerty said. “State schools are a little bit more insulated because they get state appropriations, but those have taken hits over the years."
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
“Students can’t afford to fund the progressive agenda at Illinois colleges.”
There, I fixed the headline.