Rahm Emanuel’s mayoral reign ends in May, but thanks to contracts he’s extended to many key agency heads, whoever replaces Emanuel will be stuck with them for years to come — or pay handsomely for the privilege of making new appointments.
A clean sweep of the heads of the Chicago Park District, City Colleges of Chicago, Chicago Public Schools and Chicago Housing Authority would cost taxpayers at least $820,000 in golden parachute salaries — and more for benefits — in addition to the salaries for the new appointees. That’s according to an analysis of those contracts by the Chicago Sun-Times. […]
• City Colleges Chancellor Juan Salgado would be entitled to a full year’s salary of at least $256,250, plus health insurance for himself and his family for the duration of the contract ending June 30, 2020 — until he finds a new job with similar benefits.
• Also guaranteed a full year’s pay — $291,500 — is Chicago Housing Authority CEO Eugene Jones Jr., who’d also get six months’ health insurance for himself and his family, if he’s fired without cause. Jones’ contract lasts until Dec. 31, 2020.
• Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson is entitled to six months’ pay on her $260,000-a-year salary if she’s terminated without cause, plus six months of health insurance for herself and her family.
Bill Daley and Susana Mendoza have both slammed the mayor for doing this.
* Meanwhile, Mendoza spent a lot of time early in the campaign going after Toni Preckwinkle. But she was always vying for second place, so that made little sense. Attacking Daley is the much better move, but it’s very late…
Susana Mendoza lit into rival mayoral hopeful Bill Daley on Monday for the city’s leasing of parking meters, accusing him of lying about his role in the unpopular privatization deal.
“It was good business for your family, but it was terrible business for Chicagoans,” Mendoza said, criticizing Daley for writing an op-ed defending the deal a year ago. “That’s about as big of a lie as you telling Chicagoans right now that you were not a key advisor to your brother during his key caretaker years as mayor. Of course you were.”
Daley fired back: “I obviously helped my brother get elected, I was his political advisor. … I had my own life, I went off and did a lot of things that had nothing to do with my brother and this administration.”
* Speaking of Daley, AFSCME Illinois Council 31 just dropped $60K on digital ads attacking him. As we’ve discussed, Daley is the lone “pension reform” candidate in the race.
* If you’ve been wondering whatever happened to Chris Kennedy…
Rich –
I am supporting Bill Daley for mayor, and I hope you will, too.
Bill Daley can keep our city safe and fair. Bill Daley will support the things that are working, and he can fix the things that aren’t, and he has the wisdom to know the difference.
He will give all of our children a reason to stay in Chicago and an opportunity to do so.
He knows underfunded schools and violent neighborhoods push people away; he knows that jobs and safety attract people to stay.
He will end the gentrification of our neighborhoods while expanding the growth of our economic engines.
He will end the property tax appeals racket that is overtaxing our neighborhoods and enriching our elected officials and party leaders.
He will go to Washington to make sure Chicago gets our fair share of the federal budget.
We protect what we love, and we love what we understand. Bill understands the neighborhoods, the traditions, and the cultures that make the city great, and he loves them, and he will protect them.
Bill knows that corruption is destroying our reputation, threatening our economy, and killing our most vulnerable. Bill Daley can clean up the corruption, and he knows you can’t bring reform if you’re beholden to the bosses.
He will stand up to the bosses, the bureaucrats, and the bullies.
We need servant leaders, not leaders of servants.
Bill is that servant leader.
– Chris Kennedy
…Adding… Willie Wilson has been using this Kennedy testimonial in his own ads…
* Related…
* Mendoza’s rise built on alliances with old-school Democrats: “At times you have to work with people even if you don’t like them. At times, you end up building strong relationships. At other times, those relationships fall apart,” Mendoza told the Tribune. “You can’t expect to get anything done in politics if you’re not willing to work with people across the aisle or within your own party.”
Provides that, after a home-schooling registration form is submitted, the State Board of Education must request a Child Protective Service Unit of the Department of Children and Family Services to investigate the home in which the home schooling will occur to ensure there is no suspected child abuse or neglect in the home…
As soon as word of HB 3560 hit social media, homeschoolers networked and began efforts to call and email the state rep. Within hours Saturday morning, the Illinois Family Institute posted on their Facebook page that Rep. Bristow agreed to withdraw the proposal.
Achieve predictable, fair and transparent assessments by requiring property owners to submit basic rent and real estate operating income information at the start of the assessment process.
This would require a legislative change: the passing of H.B. 2217, a bill sponsored by House Assistant Majority Leader Will Davis and Senate Revenue Chair Toi Hutchinson, with co-sponsors from leaders in both houses of the General Assembly. H.B. 2217 would give the Cook County Assessor’s Office—and other Illinois counties that choose to opt in—the ability to require owners of income-earning properties to disclose basic rent, real estate income, and expense information. Those who do not comply would be subject to a fine.
Many smaller properties are exempted, including commercial properties with a market value under $400,000; and residential properties with six or fewer units, or with a market value under $1 million.
Currently, income and expense information is required at the point of appeal. The Board of Review takes in this data and uses it to determine a property’s value, one appeal at a time.
The Assessor’s Office is in the business of mass appraisal. If we were equipped to require this data up front, at the start of the assessment process, we would be able to determine market-level rents for every part of the County.
An Illinois advocacy group is pushing legislation it says would bring $50 million in new money to state mental health services over the next four years.
According to the Illinois Coalition for Better Mental Health Care, more than 2.5 million Illinoisans have a mental health condition.
But the state ranks only 38th in the nation for mental health investment, while 82 of its 102 counties are designated as mental health professional shortage areas by the federal government.
Two lawmakers, Rep. Deb Conroy (D-Villa Park) and Sen. Heather Steans (D-Chicago), are sponsoring legislation – House Bill 2486 and Senate Bill 1673 – that would ramp up state mental health funding and change the funding structure to incentivize good results over flat service fees. […]
Without specific funding plans, the bills more or less just lay groundwork for the new funding and changed payment methods.
Tuesday, Feb 19, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
EarthMover Credit Union has created a unique charity program, EarthGivers, which raises money for local charity recipients. In 2018 they raised a total of $13,460 for all of their charity recipients in the Oswego, Aurora and Yorkville areas. EarthMover’s EarthGivers concern for community is a high priority within the credit union philosophy and sets the tone for how the organizations work together to improve the world around them. For more information on the credit union difference, visit www.ASmarterChoice.org.
Think Big Illinois Executive Director Quentin Fulks released the following statement after Governor JB Pritzker signed SB1, which increases Illinois’ minimum wage, into law:
“More than 40% of our workers just received a well-deserved and long-overdue raise, which is why Think Big Illinois made working to increase the minimum wage our first fight. After years of being left behind, Illinois families can now count on an administration that will work towards bold, progressive policies to help everyone get ahead.
“Think Big Illinois applauds Governor Pritzker’s quick action to help our workers, while supporting small businesses, and making our state the first in the Midwest to pass a $15 minimum wage. We look forward to being a strong ally for our working families in the fights ahead.”
* Business for a Fair Minimum Wage…
Illinois business owners say the new $15 minimum wage, signed into law today by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, will be good for business.
Business owners ranging from restaurant owners to manufacturers support raising the minimum wage because it will help businesses, communities and the economy as workers have more money to spend. What’s more, businesses will benefit from lower employee turnover and increased productivity and customer satisfaction.
The law will raise the minimum wage gradually to $15 by 2025, with the first increase from $8.25 to $9.25 going into effect on Jan. 1, 2020. The minimum wage will increase to $10 on July 1, 2020, followed by $1 increases on January 1 each year until it hits $15 in 2025. Illinois is joining New Jersey, California, New York, Massachusetts and Washington D.C. in phasing in a $15 minimum wage.
“Raising the minimum wage to $15 is pro-business,” said David Borris, Owner of Hel’s Kitchen Catering in Northbrook. “Local small businesses have a deeply personal interest in the financial health of the communities we do business in. The wellbeing of our customer base and our workforce shows in our bottom line. A healthy economy needs money circulating widely in a virtuous cycle of rising wages, consumer demand and job creation.”
Mark Forinash, Owner of Café Moxo and Café Moxo Too in Springfield, said, “We’ve paid more than the projected minimum wage for years now, and we’ve seen firsthand that when employees earn a living wage they value their job and it shows in their work. Customer service is more personal, employees are able to spend more time with family and friends, increasing their quality of life, and we have noticed a decrease in both turnover and training costs. We look forward to talented and motivated people from surrounding states with lower minimum wages coming to work in Illinois which will increase our business vitality.”
Dave Miller, Owner of Baker Miller bakery and café in Chicago, said, “For businesses to thrive, people working full-time have to earn wages they can live on. Too many people have too little purchasing power. Workers and their families need more income and less financial stress. Many small business owners want to pay our workers a higher wage in a way that allows us to stay competitive and sustainable. Gradually raising the minimum wage to $15 is an investment that will strengthen the economy and our communities.”
Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks, CEO of Earth Friendly Products, which has manufactured in Addison for more than 50 years, said, “Having manufactured in Illinois since 1967, we know that raising the minimum wage to $15 will help businesses and employees thrive. Paying a living wage has improved our bottom line. We start employees at $17 and provide great benefits while selling our products at competitive prices. Our voluntary turnover rate is extremely low, our productivity has increased, and our profits continue to grow. Our ECOS brand is sold throughout the world. And our employees are our greatest brand ambassadors.”
Robert Olson, Owner of Olson & Associates in Springfield, Washington and Lombard, said, “By gradually raising the minimum wage to $15 by 2025, low-wage businesses will have the time they need to plan and adjust, while experiencing the benefits of a higher wage floor like increased consumer spending and increased productivity. Raising the minimum wage will also mean a more level playing field for business. It’s not right that some businesses pay wages that are so low their employees need public assistance and private charity just to get by.”
* Patriotic Millionaires…
Today, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law a bill that would raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025, making Illinois the first midwestern state, and fifth state overall, to bring its minimum wage to $15 an hour. In response, Michael and Joan Pine, Patriotic Millionaires and Illinois residents, issued the following statement:
“Just two years after former Gov. Rauner vetoed similar legislation, Illinois’ working families will finally get the boost they deserve.
So long as the federal minimum wage does not keep up with increases in the costs of goods and rising inflation, it will be necessary for states to step in. By Gov. Pritzker making a living wage one of his first priorities, he has shown a commitment to the working class and the businesses that service them. An increase in wages means more money for Illinois families to spend at their local businesses. As a result, our state economy, which relies on consumer spending, will thrive.”
This post will be updated.
…Adding… Toni Preckwinkle…
I am grateful that Governor Pritzker upheld his campaign promise to make a minimum wage increase an early priority in his administration,” said Toni. “We owe it to the state’s workers to increase the minimum wage so everyone can earn a decent living, and I believe this can be accomplished in Chicago even sooner.
* Illinois Republican Party Chairman Tim Schneider…
This is only the beginning of J.B. Pritzker’s war on taxpayers and small business. Nearly doubling the minimum wage will destroy entry-level jobs, raise prices for consumers, and bust budgets at every level of government. Pritzker pledged to govern differently and listen to all parties and stakeholders, but those turned out to meaningless words.
* CFL…
“Raising the minimum wage will help lift up hundreds of thousands of workers, giving families the middle-class lifestyle that all workers deserve,” said Chicago Federation of labor President Bob Reiter. “These are workers in the retail and fast food industries, those who work with mental health, health care, and youth services, among others. They contribute to the greater good, and now they will be compensated for their important contribution.
“All workers deserve to share in the prosperity that their work produces. This new bill will increase the purchasing power of workers, which in turn will create jobs and give our economy a much-needed boost.”
CUPHD said the third case was in quarantine the entire time the disease was infectious, so they don’t believe it was spread to anyone else. But they said it’s possible the person with the fourth case spread it to other individuals at the times and places listed below:
Thursday 2/7, 5:30-8:30pm, Texas Roadhouse, 204 N. Country Fair Dr., Champaign.
Sunday 2/10, 7:00-9:10pm, Save-A-Lot, 220 N. Broadway Ave., Urbana.
Monday 2/11-Thursday 2/14, 1:00-5:30pm, Urbana Early Childhood School, 2202 E. Washington, Urbana
Tuesday 2/12, 5:00-7:30pm, Carle Urbana on Windsor, Convenient Care, 1818 E. Windsor Road, Urbana
An early childhood school. Great. Just great. Let’s just hope there are no kids at that school who are too sick from cancer or whatever to be vaccinated. The very lives of those folks are dependent upon herd immunity.
The Illinois State Police (ISP) received a Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) card application from Gary Montez Martin, DOB: 04/28/73, on January 17, 2014. A FOID background check, which consists of a name and date of birth check, was then conducted. The Firearm Owners Identification Act does not allow a FOID card applicant to submit fingerprints as part of the application process. On his application, Martin answered “NO” to the question “Have you ever been convicted of a felony?” The search of records conducted by FOID staff only produced Martin’s Illinois criminal history information, which revealed no prohibiting factors. Martin’s FOID card application was then approved on January 31, 2014.
On March 6, 2014 a firearm transaction for Martin to purchase a handgun was approved after the name and date of birth background check was again cleared. Any purchases of ammunition would have required Martin to show his valid FOID card, however, Illinois law does not require a check of a person’s FOID card to complete the purchase.
The ISP received a Firearm Concealed Carry License (FCCL) application for Martin on March 16, 2014. Unlike the FOID application, FCCL applicants may choose to submit fingerprints as a component of their application. If fingerprints are submitted, statutory processing time is reduced to 90 days from 120 days. Martin submitted fingerprints with his application. A fingerprint background check produced an FBI number.
The FBI number ultimately led FCCL staff to a Mississippi Department of Corrections entry noting a charge of aggravated assault, with incarceration for 5 years. FCCL staff then obtained Mississippi court records, which included a criminal disposition plea of guilty for aggravated assault, showing a sentence of 10 years, and a requirement to undergo psychological screening. Martin was reportedly released from custody on April 18, 1997.
Upon receipt of the court documents, Martin’s FCCL application was denied on March 26, 2014. A letter dated April 15, 2014 was sent to Martin notifying him of his FCCL application denial as well as indicating he was no longer eligible for a FOID card. Martin was notified he was responsible for surrendering his FOID card and any weapons in his possession. FCCL staff notified FOID staff for purposes of revoking Martin’s FOID card. Martin’s FOID card was subsequently revoked on April 17, 2014.
The ISP’s procedure at the time was to notify local law enforcement where the FOID card holder resides by means of the Illinois Law Enforcement Agencies Data System (LEADS). The ISP is also currently examining Illinois, Mississippi, and FBI records and systems to determine how Martin’s Mississippi conviction was discovered after his fingerprint response was returned for his FCCL application.
Once an individual’s FOID is revoked, Illinois law requires a revoked FOID card holder to surrender their FOID card and complete a Firearm Disposition Record within 48 hours of receiving notice of the revocation. The Firearm Disposition Record would document the name, address and FOID number of the individual receiving any transferred weapons from the revoked FOID card holder. A revoked FOID card holder can lawfully transfer their weapon to a valid FOID card holder or to the local law enforcement agency in the area in which the revoked FOID card holder resides. The Firearm Disposition Record requires that the revoked FOID card holder must obtain signature from the local law enforcement agency receiving the Firearm Disposition Record. The local law enforcement agency is required to mail the completed form to the Illinois State Police.
The ISP has no record of receiving a Firearm Disposition Record for Martin or Martin’s FOID card at this time, however a review of paper and electronic files continues.
If a revoked FOID Card holder fails to comply with these requirements, the county sheriff or law enforcement agency where the individual resides may petition the court to issue a search warrant for the FOID card and any firearms in their possession; however, Illinois law does not require them to do so.
The Illinois State Police issued 10,818 revocations to FOID card holders in 2018 alone. The Department is reviewing its records to determine how many outstanding Firearm Disposition Records remain for 2018, however, in most instances, the Firearm Disposition Record does not get returned to the Department.
Aurora police Chief Kristen Ziman said a criminal background check would not necessarily detect a 20-year-old conviction. But Martin’s aggravated assault is easily found in public record databases used by the Chicago Tribune and news organizations across the country.
The chief executive of the company that owns the warehouse where an employee gunned down five co-workers says a background check on him when he joined Henry Pratt Co.15 years ago did not turn up a 1995 felony conviction for aggravated assault in Mississippi.
When Martin’s concealed carry permit was denied, the state revoked his FOID card as well.
But Martin — and this is everything — kept his gun.
No one went to his home and took the gun away, despite an Illinois law that empowers the State Police to do so. Sadly, that’s the norm: Law enforcement authorities routinely fail to confiscate guns from people who have had their FOID cards revoked.
This is not a new revelation. We, the Sun-Times Editorial Board, first wrote about this problem in 2015.
Dart, in fact, has been so frustrated by the problem that he put together his own team to seize guns from people whose FOID cards have been revoked. Last year, the team retrieved about 100 weapons. Hundreds more, Dart estimates, are still out there.
In his first budget address, Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker plans to pitch an “austere” spending blueprint with no increase in the state income tax rate, a bump in education funding and new revenue from business licenses he hopes the state will create to sell recreational marijuana.
Pritzker told the Chicago Sun-Times he will also push for taxes on e-cigarettes and vaping, and for the legalization of sports betting to help bring in more money for state government. […]
Pritzker’s first budget plan will recommend pumping $375 million more into the school funding formula, which is a $25 million increase over what the state is required to fund. His budget also proposes $21 million in funding in special education grants; $5 million more for career and technical education programs for high school students and $2 million for assistance to help low-income students pay for Advanced Placement testing.
The plan also includes a $100 million increase in the Early Childhood Block grant, an increase of $7 million for early intervention programs and $3.8 million more for a pre-school to age five grant. And it will include $55.2 million in additional funding for public universities; $13.9 million for community colleges and $50 million for MAP grants.
Pritzker has an estimated $3.2 billion deficit to deal with in a budget address he’s set to deliver Wednesday in front of a joint session of the House and Senate. House Revenue and Finance Committee Chair state Rep. Mike Zalewski, D-Riverside, said he expects two different paths to be laid out.
“‘Here’s what happens if we don’t act with some revenue, here’s what happens if we try to be creative with some revenue,’ so I’ll be interested in those two scenarios,” Zalewski said. […]
Zalewski said while Pritzker and others continue to push for changing the state’s flat income tax to one that taxes you more the more you make, he doesn’t think there will be any change in the income tax rate proposed for the coming budget.
“Advocating for what’s in place now though will require some out-of-the-box thinking, some unconventional sources of revenue, recreational cannabis, recreational sports betting,” Zalewski said. “Those are the two golden oldies I think we’ll hear about.”
Zalewski said lawmakers could move fast enough to capture some revenue from cannabis and gambling expansion for the coming fiscal year that begins July 1, but the estimated revenue in the hundreds of millions from cannabis and gambling isn’t expected to fill the $3.2 billion hole, or a little less than 10 percent of the current $36 billion budget.
Sen. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, said he thinks a successful speech by Pritzker will be the presentation of “a frank and honest budget to the people of the state for consideration by the legislative branch.”
“There’s going to have to be sacrifice across the board, I believe, at the end of the day,” said Manar, whose district includes Decatur. “There is undoubtedly a set of challenges facing this governor that hasn’t been faced by any governor. Are there going to be disappointed individuals? Ask me next Thursday and then ask me on May 31. My guess is there probably will be.”
And, 40 hours before taking the lectern to propose his first budget, Pritzker said the situation inside many state agencies is “tough,” with a “depressed” state government in need of repair.
“We’ve got to make sure that we … truly turn state government into a delivery mechanism for the services you all expect it to deliver,” he said, citing the need to be efficient and effective in that delivery to spend taxpayer money wisely.
* Property tax appeals lawyer and Joe Berrios ally who is supporting Toni Preckwinkle for mayor files legislation to make the Cook County Assessor an appointed office. What could possibly go wrong?…
An ally of Toni Preckwinkle got into a shouting match with Lori Lightfoot on Monday after Lightfoot accused Preckwinkle of being behind a “power grab” aimed at turning the Cook County’s elected assessor into an appointed office.
State Rep. Robert Martwick (D-Chicago) is a property tax appeals attorney and longtime family friend of former Cook County Assessor Berrios who was a campaign surrogate during Berrios’ failed re-election campaign.
Martwick also happens to be the 38th Ward Democratic committeeman who has endorsed Preckwinkle for mayor.
On Friday, Martwick filed a bill in Springfield that would dramatically change the way Cook County assessor is chosen.
Starting in 2022, after newly-elected assessor Fritz Kaegi completes his first term, the assessor would be appointed by the county board president and confirmed by the Cook County board.
Rep. Martwick (D-Chicago) is developing a habit of doing stuff like this. Remember his progressive income tax proposal that would’ve raised state tax rates on people making just $17,500 a year? The right wing had a field day with that one a couple of years ago, and it is still bringing it up to this day.
If Martwick was serious about reforming the system, Lightfoot said, he should have included Kaegi in that discussion rather than filing a bill to take Kaegi off the ballot after one term. “You could have called him at any point. You could have called him during his transition period to have that discussion,” she said. “Instead, what you did is you dropped the bill on a Friday afternoon and you called him afterward. That smacks of cronyism.”
“You’re a Joe Berrios surrogate,” Lightfoot added. “You were a Joe Berrios surrogate through the entire campaign. You filed this bill to profit yourself. Who benefits from a system that’s not changed?” […]
Martwick, himself a tax appeal lawyer, said he introduced the bill simply as a way to “start a conversation” about the way assessments are conducted in Cook County. Martwick noted many Illinois counties appoint their assessors. “Shouldn’t we be having discussions about the best way to move forward and reform those systems?” he said.
“Why are we not having that discussion?” Martwick said.
* The furor was so intense that Preckwinkle had to issue a statement denouncing the bill…
A Joint Statement From Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and @AssessorCook Fritz Kaegi:
The Cook County Assessor is, and should continue to be, an elected position so that it remains directly accountable to the residents of the County.
* Also, here’s a hint: When somebody accuses you of not being credible, don’t admit it…
“You’re not credible,” Lightfoot told him.
“Well, neither are you Lori. If you intend to govern the city of Chicago like this, this is exactly why you’re not prepared to be mayor of the city of Chicago,” Martwick replied.
“This is Rob Martwick, Exhibit A of the broken and corrupt political system,” Lightfoot said as she turned toward cameras and pointed at the state representative standing just feet away from her.
Tuesday, Feb 19, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
J.B. Pritzker is set to paint a dire portrait of Illinois finances in his Wednesday budget address. And according to the state’s own numbers, Illinois hasn’t balanced a budget in nearly two decades.
But why?
One simple reason: State spending has grown far faster than Illinoisans’ ability to pay for it.
From 2007 to 2017, Illinois state spending grew nearly 50 percent faster than personal incomes on a per capita basis. This rapid growth in spending has led to irresponsible budgeting, tax hikes and borrowing.
But there is an alternative.
The Illinois Policy Institute’s Budget Solutions 2020 plan provides a bipartisan path to a balanced budget without tax hikes, while responsibly paying down the state’s pension debt and bill backlog. Thankfully, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have already introduced many of the tools Pritzker needs to balance the state budget in the current General Assembly, including a smart spending cap, school district efficiency and constitutional pension reform.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration has confirmed that its new public pension plan will slash $800 million from the state’s scheduled pension payment next fiscal year, which begins July 1.
That reduction is a direct result of Pritzker’s proposal unveiled last week by Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes, which would extend the state’s pension payment “ramp” by seven years, from 2045 to 2052.
But the administration won’t yet say how much more money will be “saved” during the coming fiscal years by extending the payment ramp, except to suggest that the near-term cost reductions might be somewhere around $800 million a year.
More importantly, the administration also will not say how many more billions this scheme will wind up costing taxpayers in the long-term.
Hynes recently complained on WTTW’s “Chicago Tonight” program that the people who devised the original pension payment ramp never dreamed that annual state pension payments would eventually consume 20 percent of state revenues.
And, indeed, way back in 1994 the state projected the pension payments this fiscal year would be $4.66 billion. Instead, the governor’s budget office puts that figure at $7.1 billion, rising to almost $8.2 billion next fiscal year and then to $9 billion by Fiscal Year 2022.
Stretching out the payment funding schedule would reduce short-term costs. But one person’s pension funding schedule restructuring is another person’s pension “holiday,” as skimping and skipping the payments were called back in the days before all heck broke loose.
Remember, a dollar saved today by not putting it into the pension fund results in multiple investment dollars lost that will have to be put in by taxpayers years down the road. This is the biggest reason why the state’s pension payments are so high right now. Payments were deferred and, therefore, investments were not made and then debt piled up to mountainous levels and taxpayers are currently being forced to make up the difference.
Almost all the revenue from the 2011 income tax hike had to go to the pension funds because the state had gotten itself so far in over its collective head that it couldn’t make the full annual payment. When the tax hike was allowed to partially roll back in 2015, the state kept making pension payments, but that exploded its unpaid bill backlog and forced cuts to the rest of government.
Pritzker has said over and over again that he opposes any sort of constitutional change to allow for reduced pension benefits going forward. The only remaining option is to pay the piper. The temptation appears intense right now to once again try to shift those payments into the future.
The Pritzker folks say transferring state assets into the pension funds could negate the long-term negative fiscal impact of extending the payment ramp. That could be true if those assets are significant and if the General Assembly agrees to do it.
Pritzker recently announced a task force designed to look into the use of state assets to prop up the pension funds. It will look into selling off state-owned real estate, including the Thompson Center in Chicago.
The most discussed state asset sale is the Tollway. Neither Hynes nor the administration would confirm the widespread speculation that the Tollway will be put on the auction block.
A Tollway sale could generate tens of billions of dollars, but Pritzker likely will have to use every bit of leverage he has to convince legislators to pass it. Former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley’s parking meter privatization scheme has been so universally derided that all government asset sales, even logical ones, are now automatically viewed with the deepest of suspicions. Any sale or lease would likely have to come with far more restrictions than Daley’s parking meter deal, which has sprouted meters all over the city while forcing prices ever higher.
And a 2016 transportation revenue “lockbox” amendment to the Illinois Constitution may make the sale impossible anyway.
I am now covering my seventh governor. And what I’ve discovered about the “future” over all those years is that it always arrives. Freeing up a little budgetary breathing room today can have severe consequences down the road. I’ve seen it happen time and time again.
The best, most responsible solution is to match reliable state revenues with realistic projected expenditures. It’s never easy to do that, but it’s how other states avoid the fiscal trouble Illinois is constantly faced with.
*** UPDATE *** I just talked to Sen. Oberweis. He says the person who filed the paperwork for him accidentally checked the wrong box. He’s running for US Congress, not US Senate.
* The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150’s “Fight Back” PAC is running two new TV ads…
* Script…
Look up, Illinois, because the sky is literally falling. Illinois has thousands of structurally deficient bridges. Concrete falling. Steel cracking.
Now, even Lake Shore Drive had to be shut down for dangerous deterioration.
Look up! If you see damaged roads and bridges, post a pic and tag it with #lookup and go to Fightbackwithus.com to tell your state legislator to fix our roads and bridges.
