-- 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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Illinois used to have bail bondsmen who would pay the required bail for an arrested individual and then would charge about 10% of the bail as a fee for their services. The state eliminated the bondsmen and instead offered bail with the same 10% fee that the state/county kept as a processing fee. It made the whole process easier and eliminated the middle man, bondsmen. That 10% fee helped run the courts, the clerk’s office, the sheriff etc that processed arrested persons, public defenders, etc. Removing that fee is going to add additional costs, lots more costs, that can only… Read more »