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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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Wouldn’t a progressive tax include retirees? Or would they exempt a retired school admin who happens to have a $200,000 pension?
why do they always start with the supposed answer – taxes? Let’s start with what the bills are and how much do these idiots need. As stated below, yeah let’s calculate everything it would take. What? Maybe $45B per year to pay for everything and some reasonable way to pay the unfunded pensions? $50B? Then let’s use that number and derive a progressive rate. We know about how many people make how much…what’s the result? Maybe even throw in 1% cap on property taxes to see what the State should really pay to drive down property taxes. Tax services, tax… Read more »
I think that if we are going to have a Democratic governor in Illinois it should be Dan Biss. He is a crackpot. I want him to put the transaction tax on the finance industry, and load up Illinois with taxes, user fees and socialism. Let’s get it over with.
There’s a very good case to be made to “just get it over with,” as you put it. Just blow it up. I haven’t bought into it yet, but I could certainly make a case for it.
I’ve seen Martire’s tax plan mentioned here. The effective tax rate on $200K would put us in the highest 10 states nationwide, higher than NY and CT. At $500K, we’re in the top 5. Since Martire’s plan doesn’t have a separate bracket for married filing jointly like most states, it’s hard to determine the actual household impact. If there’s only one bracket, it’s a lot worse. But the argument for a progressive income tax always forgets one important point: property tax. We’ve been told for decades that our property taxes are high because income taxes are low. Per Wallethub, here’s… Read more »