-- 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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Unions and their members are awful, terrible people. Instead of saying “We remain a partner with the administration to cut costs, maintain fiscal solvency and keep the cost of education reasonable for students, and we believe that 2% costs can easily be achieved…”, they say, “….escalatory actions like this suggest that the university administrators want to choose a more antagonistic path…” a measly 2% cut, a nothing burger, is “antagonistic”.
Where I work we manage our expenses pretty well and I think we could cut 2% if we needed to. I’m guessing ISU could cut 5% if needed. In their defense those people don’t know anything about running a for profit business. Telling them to cut their budget by 2% probably scared the crap out of them because they don’t have a clue how to do it.