Illinois Lawmakers Thumb Noses at Constitution to Impose New Taxes – Wirepoints
June 9, 2026
12 Comments
A mess of uncertainty and litigation is sure to follow.
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With $162 billion more from taxpayers, couldn’t you deliver a few bond upgrades, too
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So let’s throw some real numbers at this. I used Aurora (2nd largest city) to illustrate the real issue. A couple of points though. The wage data is from 2013 whereas the income data is from 2016, so it likely overstates household and per capita income relative to the wage data. Still and all, even using this set of data, clearly illustrates the point: the public sector are clearly overcompensated. The wage figures do not include pension and healthcare contributions, it is simply paycheck data. Also note >32% of the population has a bachelor’s degree or higher and over 13%… Read more »
Another big part of the problem is that teachers are overpaid from the start of their careers. On a related note, teachers with advanced degrees start at an even higher salary. The private sector doesn’t work that way. Why should someone be higher paid simply because they have an advanced degree? Pay should be based on performance. Because of the current pay structures (high starting salaries plus step increases plus lucrative contracts guaranteeing 3-5 percent annual raises), don’t blink your eye, because that young teacher who started his or her career 10 years ago is now making around $100K.
World without end, one has to wonder why you have such staunch negative attitudes towards teachers’ pay. I can’t say this applies to you personally, but many with that viewpoint characterize it as very easy work with LOTS of free time. Are you one of them? Yes? Given those attitudes on your part one has to wonder why you apparently didn’t seek to become a teacher. After all, where else can a person earn such fabulous wages with such a short work day and even have three months off to go to your condo in Hawaii? But, you did advise… Read more »
Some of us have a protestant work ethic still and viewed all government positions as where the losers who could not compete in the private sector end up – basically a FDR type of welfare program. As I said some people have actual pride, how anyone can be prideful about being a government worker is beyond me. I work with a bunch of govies each and every week, and frankly they disgust me. The only ones that seem worth a damn are the contract workers; the govies suck. Teachers in particular are particularly nauseating. I married one, but only after… Read more »
Ah, if only the rest of America followed your simple(-minded) logic all would be right. i’d say those who you find disgusting probably feel likewise about your logic, too. No room for compromise in a small mind. Everything has to fit perfectly, after all.
Yes James you are an intellectual giant with your sophomoric persuasion skills. I tremble in fear from your intellectual superiority.
My main points are that, compared to private sector workers, IL teachers are overpaid (especially given all the time off they get) and have much too generous retirement packages. You can say what you want about what teachers should make, but, in my opinion, these excessive salaries and retirement packages are causing IL residents who have to pay for this excess to move out of state, resulting in ongoing population loss for IL.
My take is that our citizens cannot afford to pay for everything politicians say that everybody should have. Particularly they shouldn’t pay for things that do not work. Free public education through high school and now (some say) through community college or a bachelor’s degree. And a large portion of the high school graduates can’t read, write or add. Other demands of the people: Access to doctors and lawyers and medicines. Safe streets. Running water as a “human right” that one needn’t pay for if the consumer is at the poverty level. Adequate food and housing. Fuel for winter warmth… Read more »
Mr. Herzrent, I want to complement your very well considered and thoughtfully stated posting here. Its one of the better ones I’ve seen in those ways over my many months as a reader here. Most commenters specialize in narrower ways of looking at this issue and do so in vitriolic matter, one inclined to bring emotional involvement rather than influencing the mind of the reader so much. Yours is a stellar example of what can be done in a positive way on those matters. Great job!
“The cost is high because Illinois leaders throughout the 20th century consistently underfunded public pension systems so they could spend more tax dollars on other priorities.”
Liar.
The cost is high because Illinois leaders throughout the 20th century consistently hiked pension benefits and salaries, even though pensions were already underfunded, so they could spend more tax dollars on other priorities.
If you can’t make the payment, don’t hike the benefits!
Notice that Dave Urbanek of TRS did not mention the TRS document “Evolution of the TRS Benefit Structure” in his article. https://www.trsil.org/sites/default/files/documents/history.pdf That document is instrumental in exposing his misleading argument for the following reasons. Since TRS has always been underfunded, TRS was underfunded at the time of every single legislative benefit hike in that document. Next add on pay hikes that occurred. The result of legislative benefit hikes and pay hikes, is hiked pension payouts. When taking into account and all the legislative benefit hikes and pay hikes, every single one of which occurred while TRS was underfunded, the… Read more »
Average teacher’s salary: $65,877
Elementary school teacher’s salary: $62,620
Middle school teacher’s salary: $66,630
High school teacher’s salary: $68,380
Illinois has the 11th-highest average teacher pay. When compared to the 50 largest school districts across the country, Chicago public schools pay the highest educator salaries.
I think those IL salary stats are low, at least for Chicago suburban teachers. Pull up any suburban school district and note the many teachers making over $100K for a nine-month job. Also, if anyone tells you it’s a 12-month job, why do some teachers work other jobs during the summer?
What is the source of the statistics?
Isn’t there something wrong when a government worker makes more money collecting a government pension, than while working?
“If pensions had been properly funded …”, IL would now have the population of Wyoming because most of the IL residents would’ve relocated, either because of oppressively higher taxes or because essential services wouldn’t have occurred. This guy won’t admit the obvious: teacher salaries and retirement packages are out of line with private-sector workers.
Precisely. ““If pensions had been properly funded …” is such a loaded argument. But I’ll finish the thought “…teachers’ salaries would be lower, teachers would pay more for their health benefits, and their resulting pensions would be smaller.”
I see no mention of the real issue, teachers in IL are way over compensated through the pension system and retirement benefits. Moreover, there is the 10,000 pound elephant in the room, which is, in a technological society what is the purpose to teacher lead classroom instruction anyways? The basic delivery format has not changed in schools since the 1800s. The real issue with pensions is why they exist in the first place. Technology can replace classroom teachers allowing each child to thrive and learn at their own natural rate without being inhibited by the cognitive abilities of their age… Read more »
very well stated