"When the recession eases, states and local governments will be under pressure to improve funding of their pension systems. It can be done when there’s a political will to do it. Wisconsin, just north of Illinois, the nation’s perennial pension problem child, has a fully funded state retirement system. In fact, it’s the only state that’s over-funded, with 103% of what it needs to provide benefits for every present and future retiree."
A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.
The pandemic was the nail in the coffin. Illinois was dead on arrival. The thing to watch is the budgets of non-profits. Let’s see how many survive.