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Proft: Democratic pension plan will “confiscate your homes”

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* Conservative radio show host and Republican fundraiser Dan Proft had an, um, interesting take on the Democratic pension “cost shifting” proposal, which would force local school districts to pay the employer share of pension costs over several years…

* Transcript…

“‘I’m sorry, we may now have to now confiscate your homes.’ I mean, that’s essentially what the pension push-down legislation that’s been proposed in Springfield offers to do.

“We are going to use your home as collateral for somebody else’s guaranteed pension.

“And so when you see your property tax bill go from five, to seven, to ten, to twelve, to fifteen percent of your mortgage that’s what’s happening.

“They see your home as useful… to them to help sustain promises they made that they knew they couldn’t finance, and now they’re running out of options to finance them at the state level. So, it’s time to confiscate your homes to make sure that they keep their promises to their core political constituencies at your expense.

“So if the prospect of having your home liquidated for somebody else’s public sector pension doesn’t animate you and your neighbors, then frankly, I’m bit at a loss, I don’t know what will.”

No hyperbole there.

Full video.

* Other videos…

* Joe Walsh uncut

* Brad Schneider: I Support J Street

* Bobby Schilling at Tea Party Express

* Governor Quinn Announces Start of Construction on New Transportation Center in Joliet

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 12:40 pm

Comments

It is great to see the hedgefund hustlers’ favorite extremist out and about reminding folks just how nuts he is. Must be really overworked now that his has to come for the early shift at Blagoof Broadcasting

Comment by CircularFiringSquad Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 12:51 pm
Poor man’s Sean Hannity

Comment by Anon - amiss Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 1:04 pm
Didn’t profit work for the city of Cicero? No corruption goin on there

Comment by foster brooks Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 1:20 pm
Downstate Police and Fire pension funds are funded through property taxes, as is IMRF. The “cost shift” scenario only envisions the TRS normal cost going to the locals - the State would still be the ultimate guarantor if TRS ever went belly up. That’s not the case if a local police or fire pension fund became insolvent, so the seeds are already in place for the doomsday scenario he’s outlining.

Comment by The Elderly Man You Used to Love Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 1:58 pm
So if I couldn’t afford to pay the tax increase, my house was sold for taxes, and those funds went to make up for not paying my taxes, which were raised to pay for the pension bailout in the first place; I am having a tough time figurnig out how Proft is wrong. If you don’t think they would, that is fine. It doesn’t mean they can’t, nor does it mean he is wrong.

Comment by Poor Man's Dufus Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:05 pm
Proft is absolutely right on this one. Real estate taxes are a lien on your home if not promptly paid. Democrats see successful people and businesses as entities to be taxed and regulated for the greater good of their otherwise unsustainable entitlement bribes to voters.

Comment by Ace Matson Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:09 pm
Democrats aren’t the only ones for the cost shift. The IL Policy Institute is the other big supporter. http://www.illinoispolicy.org/news/article.asp?ArticleSource=4821

Comment by Eve Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:13 pm
Depending on how quickly te cost shift would take place, I think by the time the cost is actually reflected in increased local levies, the mass exodus from Illinois definitely could actually materialise. I know I would have to consider the cost of living elsewhere if a significant increase happened to my property taxes here downstate in what is an otherwise fairly inexpensive place to live. They need to seriously consider the possibility of more list revenue from people leaving than what they would raise from increasing taxes on those who would be left. Not trying to play boogieman. Just observing how I would react as a taxpayer with a family and tight budget already.

Comment by Amuzing Myself Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:21 pm
=== It is great to see the hedgefund hustlers’ favorite extremist out and about reminding folks just how nuts he is ===

Let’s be clear…the hedge fund/Wall Street types stand to make bundles of money if they ever enact a 401-k plan for public employees. Ever single teacher, police officer, firefighter and prison guard will start paying them fees…fees funded by taxpayer dollars.

Just so we’re clear about the conflict of interest.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:21 pm
@Poor Man’s Dufus -

I’m not sure where you live, but let’s be clear about how things work in most school districts in the downstate teacher’s pension fund:

1) Barely 50% of your property tax dollars go into the classroom. So when Proft and Tom Cross argue school districts will have to raise property taxes if we stop cost-shifting to the state, they are assuming that there’s no other waste in the school budget. Wrong.

2) Many, many school districts offer teachers a golden parachute by boosting their last months’ salary just before retirement, because school districts currently push those costs off on the state. The golden parachutes will end, and pension costs will go down as a result.

3) Unless I’m missing something, homeowners are STILL protected by property tax caps in most of the state. So the idea that you’re gonna be forced out of your home is kinda ludicrous.

4) You can always vote your school board out of office if they try to jack your property taxes, and I’m assuming that’s what any community would do.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:28 pm
Next from Proft: They will throw babies in the air and catch them on bayonets.

Comment by L.S. Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:29 pm
Maybe a bit of a stretch - but that’s pretty much in line with the stuff that Proft says on the radio. Not really surprised by that - and actually I have to give him props here - the pension / local burden shift is probably the number one issue that nobody is talking about. Suburban voters should be freaking out about it.

The Schnieder video is pathetic. He’s a life long AIPAC fundraiser, a pro-Israel Jewish guy from Deerfield. His primary opponent went after him for being too hardline and against peace.

So that’s the Dold’s campaign can do to make Schneider look anti-Israel? Weak. Maybe something more credible might stick.

Comment by Siriusly Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:30 pm
What about Chicago homeowners? They have been bearing the brunt of the teacher pension cost shift for years and no one has met this fate. Can this guy ever have a normal, reasonable policy conversation?

Comment by Jimmy Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:46 pm
===They have been bearing the brunt of the teacher pension cost shift for years and no one has met this fate.===

Not exactly. They’re currently coming to the end of a long pension holiday. The bill coming due is close to a billion dollars a year.

Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:47 pm
proft on radio is mostly standard conservative stuff it’s his partner who goes off on rants that don’t make sense or are angry.

Siriusly, schneider bought a few tickets to a couple of aipac speeches and has been running around the district like he’s dore gold. The 10th dems are to a large extent anti-aipac as they see it aligned with kirk and bush when he was in office. It’s a strong hit which could sway a few hundred votes. They needed to start this barrage in the spring and summer though.

Comment by Shore Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:50 pm
Just so we’re clear. Dan Proft advocates redistribution. Good to know.

Of course none of these taxes would be a burden if we would all just follow Dan’s lead and get bloated no-bid contracts via political cronies in Cicero.

Comment by just sayin' Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 2:51 pm
Proft hits the nail right on the head. Of course, one of our Metro East Democrat state reps has told our local papers that no pension shift bill has even been discussed. I’m not sure what planet he’s living on:

-State Rep. Dan Beiser, D-Alton, said he never heard of such a proposal and doubts it would be called in the veto session as Republicans claim.

“They’re playing games. Nobody has approached me about the bill. As far as I know it’s not on the agenda for the veto sessions. It’s just pure election year gamesmanship,” Beiser said.-

Comment by East Sider Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:08 pm
My high school district pension plan is under 30% funded. And now that TRS lowered its earning assumptions going forward, I suppose it’s even more under funded. What’s left but the property taxes to go after? It will be incremental due to prop tax caps, but don’t be surprised if enough mommies and daddies saddle up a majority to win a tax hike in your district now and then. High property taxes are a good deal in a decent school district if you have two or more kids with a moderate mortgage. Two kids in quality K-8 and four years of quality HS at public expense are a bargain compared to a decent parochial school. And if you can get one more kid (say from your family in a rotten school district for a minor contribution), you’re doing even better.
Of course, the whole system is predatory on seniors and destructive of property values, but who cares. It’s for the children.

Comment by Cook County Commoner Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:08 pm
If you don’t like what Proft said, what is the alternative to the state pension funding crisis?

Where is the money going to come from?

Comment by Hacks Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:14 pm
One side benefit of this cost transfer discussion: more focus on the biggest sources of taxes, waste and corruption in Illinois government — local villages, school, libraries, and park districts. Many run by self-described “fiscal Conservatives.”

Everyone loves to complain about waste by “them”, that is “over there” (e.g. State and Federal levels). Few realize that the worst problems are mostly much closer to home, caused by people they personally know.

The best of the Tea Party groups in Illinois are starting to focus locally.

Comment by walkinfool Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:31 pm
“Where is the money going to come from?”

um, maybe be responsible for your own local officials and their pensions? Maybe there would be less bloat if people knew they couldn’t shift the cost to others living elsewhere.

Proft seems to have missed the memo that Republicans are supposed to be about personal responsibility.

Comment by just sayin' Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:35 pm
The full conversation, that I have heard from Dan many times, is that the State require a shift to 401K’s in exchange for local responsibility for pension payments.

Comment by Backwards Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:42 pm
“Of course, the whole system is predatory on seniors and destructive of property values”

How is the system predatory on seniors? Seniors have the Senior Citizen exemption and the Senior freeze exemption and other possible exemptions that make their property taxes FAR LOWER than non-seniors. This in turn causes non-seniors to pay higher taxes.

Dont get me wrong, I am a supporter of these exemptions. But to say that the whole property tax system is predatory on seniors is absolutely wrong.

Comment by Anon - amiss Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:48 pm
Time for some serious discussion- Rich is right- The State has been on a Pension Holiday for a long time- Unfortunately the HOLE is now so deep- there is no way to solve this problem without doing several things:
1. Increase contributions on the part of participants- and end employer pick-ups- the teachers complain they have paid into the fund for years but in reality- the School Districts for the most part make both the employer and employee contribution-

2. Mandate that all new revenue coming into Illinois Dept of Revenue MUST go toward paying the Pension Systems

3. Immediately impose a Czar onto each pension board to supervise investment decisions- the monitor needs to be a true investment professional not some political hack- None of the pension systems have many if any truly professional people on their Boards and the investment staff at each fund is of the caliber you would expect being paid State salaries- Consolidation over to the State Board of Pensions isn’t the answer either because ISBE ’s results have been nothing to write home about- The State is not achieving returns close to what the endowments at Harvard or Yale achieve with those funds employing highly paid investment professionals- paying people a million/year would be a small price to pay assuming the returns improved- TRS in the last several weeks has announced termination of its commodity program exactly when commodities are going great and Pension & Investments announced a TRS emerging hedge fund manager closed its doors resulting in a 37.5 million loss to TRS(50 % of the investment.)

4. Eliminate the COLA’s and take the dispute to litigation-Lets finally get a judicial determination as to what can or can’t be modified for existing participants

5. Legislate criminal penalties for individuals who abuse the end of salary curbs including full loss of any pension eligibility

6. Begin to tax the receipt of retirement benefits on the part of illinois residents- The teachers cry about not receiving Social Security- NEWS FLASH- Social security benefits are taxed at the federal level so why not tax all retirement benefits at the State level

If the legislature doesn’t do something soon(not three years from now- Illinois is truly going to find itself frozen out of the bond markets- Even if all of this causes pain- it will be less painful then having to place the Systems into receivership- like it or not- the Funds are going to soon lose the ability to pay out current benefit levels without seriously selling off investment assets and the State simply cannot go to tax payers again and ask for more$$ or try to shift the cost onto the local governments resulting in massive RE tax increasa and corresponding drops in housing values

Quinn/Madigan/Cullerton- Get serious and get to work- the three of you run illinois and you need to stop running it into bankruptcy

Comment by Sue Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:53 pm
@Anon - amiss

I’d add that seniors pay no income tax on their retirement incomes.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 3:54 pm
ANON- Most is means tested. And the exemptions and tax abatement provision you neglected to mention, also means tested, are nothing compared to where prop taxes are going. And why should a senior citizen pay a property tax other than to cover essential services?

Comment by Cook County Commoner Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 4:14 pm
to Proft….to scare people with phony brilliance.

Comment by amalia Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 5:10 pm
I thought Republicans wanted pension reform. Now they are crying because they might get it?

Comment by Jack Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 5:46 pm
Sue @ 3:53,

re your #4 … I believe that the Kraus (IL) and Lomax (NY) decisions have already said the COLA is protected under both the pension clause and contract law and can only be modified in accordance with contract law.

In other words, the State will have to ask each individual retiree / employee to voluntarily give up the COLA in exchange for a new benefit (of roughly equal perceived value). The proposed bills to date do not have valid consideration since all they offer is the chance to buy health insurance, something that the employee / retiree currently has under both contract and statute. And if the retirees win the current lawsuits over the 20 year premium free health insurance (likely under straight contract law), then there is only a choice between two protected benefits …. which is no consideration.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 6:24 pm
Sue @ 3:53,

re your follow on to #6 …one year recently the systems had to sell off assets because the State was late making the payments; you can see it in their annual statements. And technically, they can’t go in to receivership (a bankruptcy sprecific term) since the State can’t go bankrupt. Finally, since the courts said the State had to pay the actual benefits when due (IFT, et al, IL, 1976), the State will be forced to raise taxes sooner or later if they don’t do something before that point.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 6:31 pm
@Cook County Commoner -

Before complaining too much, perhaps you ought to ask WHY you live under a high school district AND a K-8 district instead of a consolidated district.

You are paying for twice the bureaucracy Neighbor.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 6:32 pm
Right wing radio will confiscate your brain.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 8:15 pm
Oops … the Anonymous at 6:24 and 6:31 was me. Apparently I lost a couple of cookies when I cleaned the system.

Comment by RNUG Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 9:04 pm
@Shore you wrote:

“Siriusly, schneider bought a few tickets to a couple of aipac speeches and has been running around the district like he’s dore gold. The 10th dems are to a large extent anti-aipac as they see it aligned with kirk and bush when he was in office. It’s a strong hit which could sway a few hundred votes. They needed to start this barrage in the spring and summer though.”

Come on. Schneider has been about as strong as an AIPAC supporter as you can get for years. He’s been an active member and part of their organization well before he ran for Congress.

Some people in the Tenth Dems prefer J Street, but I really see this as a non issue. People that active (that they have joined a local party) have already made up their minds. This ridiculous and blatantly over the top ad is what turns people off about politics. It also shows how far the GOP needs to go to find a hit on Brad.

I truly believe the GOP is losing the Tenth. The new district numbers are simply too tough for a republican, even Dold with his significant money advantage.

Brad’s strength is his moderation and “vanilla-ness.” He’s pro-choice, pro-civil rights, moderate Jewish democrat without a record, who won’t vote for Boehner, the Ryan budget, or even have to publicly support Romney.

Comment by Jayhawk Monday, Sep 24, 12 @ 10:21 pm
@ yellow dog Dem

Four points which changes nothing about fundamentals written into this law. Give me some substance and protect me my downstaters from my Gov’t and M2!

Comment by Poor Man's Dufus Tuesday, Sep 25, 12 @ 8:07 am
Can you trust a man who graduated from law school but decided against taking the bar?

Comment by Coach Tuesday, Sep 25, 12 @ 8:10 am
@YDD

“Barely 50% of your property tax dollars go into the classroom.”

My last tax bill shows 65% going to the school district.

“I’d add that seniors pay no income tax on their retirement incomes.”

Wrong. They pay federal income taxes and up to 85% on Social Security benefits.

Comment by r Tuesday, Sep 25, 12 @ 9:07 am