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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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For the record, I will point out here two salient facts that I also commented on in Yahoo Finance. First, unlike what the anchor says, the proposals to tax retirement income call for taxing all retirement income – public and private – equally. Illinois is one of only 3 states with an income tax that exempts all retirement income from taxation. Second, these proposals are coming not from the Pritzker administration or from Democrats, but from the Civic Federation and the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago. Both of these, at a minimum, lean Republican.
What’s interesting, I think, is the growing gap between how the national press reports on our problems compared to our own press. The national press thinks we’re nuts. The local press (and the Civic Federation and Civic Committee) are pretty calm.
The public union employees in Illinois are a small % of total population yet the remaining citizens are expected and demanded to take care of them for life. These deals were made behind closed doors without any public scrutiny whatsoever. Laws were created to benefit the unions at the expense of taxpayers. These laws can be overturned with a new Con-Con. I do not recall that Moses brought down the Illinois Constitution from Mount Sinai. The Constitution was written to benefit ALL citizens not just a select few!
No convention needed. IL can initiate an amendment for public referendum with a 3/5 vote in the General Assembly. Somebody needs to advise the Fox reporter of that, who seems unaware.
Thanks Mr. Glennon! With the Democrats holding super majorities in both the House and Senate and Governor I find it unlikely to gather support to achieve 3/5 vote so status quo remains intact. I would like to see a new party come in being (B) Bi-Partisan. The “B” party would not be beholding to any party but only answer to voters. They would vote on issues that affect All Illinoisans not just a select few sort of like an Electoral College intermediators so that no party has super majority which is only a power grab. We would still have 2-party… Read more »