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The hard truth about Illinois’ future

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* Back to former Gov. Jim Edgar’s appearance on a panel discussion hosted by AARP Illinois and NPR Illinois…

Though [panelists] all said the situation is slightly better than it was last year, the state is still in a terrible position and that it will take years and fiscal discipline to climb out of, they said.

“There are no silver bullets to these problems,” Edgar said. “There isn’t going to be a one-year solution. Whatever the solutions are going to be, they are going to be very unpleasant to everybody. There’s going to be more taxes, cuts in programs, and, probably the hardest thing, we’re going to have to stay on that dive for many years. It took us 20 years to get into this hole, and it’s going to take us a lot of years to get out of it. But we need to start.”

As we’ve already discussed, this hole took us more than 20 years to dig. That’s why we can’t have an “all or nothing” governor. We simply cannot climb out of this in one year, or two years, or three, or…

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, May 11, 18 @ 10:44 am

Comments

“There’s going to be more taxes, cuts in programs, and, probably the hardest thing, we’re going to have to stay on that dive for many years.”

Why is the Democratic candidate for Governor promising all kinds of new spending on progressive programs to be paid for by just the new taxes on millionaires and billionaires?

Comment by Lucky Pierre Friday, May 11, 18 @ 10:48 am
I’ve always liked Governor Edgar, but it’s funny he is implying that all the State’s irresponsible financial behavior started after he left office.

Comment by Moby Friday, May 11, 18 @ 10:49 am
Convenient use of numbers, Jimbo

Comment by Anonymous Friday, May 11, 18 @ 10:51 am
Why are the trolls so afraid to pick a nickname?

Comment by Norseman Friday, May 11, 18 @ 10:55 am
==It took us 20 years to get into this hole…==

27, Jim.

Comment by City Zen Friday, May 11, 18 @ 11:07 am
Edgar is correct.

By speaking out - Edgar provides some cover for legislators courageous enough to ignore the trolls and other political cowards to begin the tough work ahead.

Comment by VanillaMan Friday, May 11, 18 @ 11:15 am
Just a note for perspective: In 2009, with Quinn, we had the bones of a fiscal governing plan that got us fully healthy in 30 years, by my conservative estimation. We made some real progress for four years, and have fallen backwards ever since.

Comment by walker Friday, May 11, 18 @ 11:18 am
in 30 years the annual pension payment will be 19 billion dollars.

That is fully healthy or realistic?

Comment by Lucky Pierre Friday, May 11, 18 @ 11:38 am
Where was Gov. Edgar’s rhetoric during the budget impasse? Let’s not forget that he personally profited from the vendor assistance programs run by the state. Some part of our $1 billion in interest payments will go/has gone directly into his pocket.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-illinois-bills-factbox/factbox-the-companies-making-money-from-illinois-unpaid-bills-idUSKBN13I12G

Comment by pawn Friday, May 11, 18 @ 11:40 am
=== Where was Gov. Edgar’s rhetoric during the budget impasse? ===

Obviously, you’re a new reader to the blog otherwise you would have seen a number of times Edgar implored action.

Comment by Norseman Friday, May 11, 18 @ 11:50 am
===in 30 years the annual pension payment will be===

Only on paper. The unfunded liability will be next to nothing by then. Stop doing things like using that bogus talking point or you’ll never get out of auto-moderation.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, May 11, 18 @ 11:51 am
Norseman, I saw what he said then. It never went far enough for me. and once the McKinney report came out, I understood why. He benefited from the impasse.

Comment by pawn Friday, May 11, 18 @ 12:01 pm
Extra special coming from the guy that was a key architect of our current fiscal disaster.

Comment by Ron Friday, May 11, 18 @ 12:33 pm
“in 30 years the annual pension payment will be 19 billion dollars.”

So? Things cost what they cost. If that’s the number, that’s the number.

Comment by Odysseus Friday, May 11, 18 @ 12:33 pm
With the sorry state of our state, it looks more likely that the state I was born in, will not be the state I die in.

Comment by Anonymous Friday, May 11, 18 @ 12:35 pm
Something like 30,000 people left illinois in the year to July 2016 to 2017. Isn’t that before the massive income tax increase? I’m afraid to see the 2018 census estimates.

Comment by Ron Friday, May 11, 18 @ 12:42 pm
Edgar is absolutely right. There will be significant pain for a long time. If everyone isn’t included in the pain process, then it gets ugly. So a progressive tax, including a component of retirement income, spending cuts and yes, some benefits cuts need to be part of the solution.

If any of that doesn’t work for you, consider the alternative, which will mean an increase in the exodus of people who have the means to do so. That will only increase the burden on the remaining taxpayers, and accelerate the death spiral.

Those in charge of deciding how the pain will be spread have a tremendous responsibility. I hope they are up to the challenge.

Comment by SSL Friday, May 11, 18 @ 1:15 pm
Seems it to took 48 years and counting, if the starting point is the 1970 Illinois Constitution which protects public pensions but did not mandate full funding. Unless the state makes it illegal to move out, the necessary medicine mayl kill the patient.

Comment by Cook County Commoner Friday, May 11, 18 @ 1:20 pm
A lot of you are trashing Governor Edgar. Given a choice of who to believe, would you believe Edgar or Rauner?

Comment by ajjacksson Friday, May 11, 18 @ 1:38 pm
ajjacksson — I believe Edgar over Rauner to be sure. 1000%. I am just frustrated because I wanted him to use his stature and credibility to be more forceful in speaking out about the damage that was being caused by the impasse. Sure, he made a few public statements a couple of times a year. But he could have provided significant cover for Republicans to push back against Rauner much sooner, and before we had got to imminent threats of junk bond status, etc. I know we personally put in a plea to him through people in his trusted circle and were ignored. I am frustrated that he gets all the plaudits for speaking the truth now, when he could have been a lot more effective a year or two ago. But of course, he was personally compromised by profiting off the impasse, something we learned only after our pleas went unheeded.

Comment by pawn Friday, May 11, 18 @ 2:42 pm
People like Edgar keep saying things like things are going to be “unpleasant for everybody.” Yet, I wonder what the courts would think of measures to make the solution “unpleasant for everybody,” or whether “everybody” just means “private sector taxpayers.”

Comment by JB13 Friday, May 11, 18 @ 3:12 pm
JB13

What pain would the private sector taxpayers be made to feel that public employees would not also share?

Comment by Ole' Nelson Friday, May 11, 18 @ 3:51 pm
Ole’, was that supposed to be funny?

Comment by Ron Friday, May 11, 18 @ 3:55 pm
Public employees pay taxes too of course.

Comment by Ole' Nelson Friday, May 11, 18 @ 3:57 pm
Under the “feckless” last governor we were fecklessly reducing bill backlog and making pension payments. Then, along came Bruce…..Quinn did more than Edgar to chip away at the problem. Low and behold the feckless have less regard for him then “jump the problem” Jimmy.

Comment by wondering Friday, May 11, 18 @ 4:10 pm
And public workers get huge pension benefits from paying taxes.

Comment by Ron Friday, May 11, 18 @ 4:15 pm
I would add….Rauner has one thing right. Mike Madigan was at the stove when this problem was cooking. Mike Madigan, more that any other, made this problem with his duck and dodge strategy to hold power. Republicans and Democrats had a race to the bottom, you won MIkey, we lost…and here we are.

Comment by wondering Friday, May 11, 18 @ 4:20 pm
Ron, you just don’t get it. The Illinois public pension system was an end run around FDR’s social security system. It was meant to shaft, not shore. Then, along came 401K. Those “huge……” pensions are merely the reflection of ss and 401k put together, and offer no more and cost no more. Your pension envy is tiresome.

Comment by wondering Friday, May 11, 18 @ 4:27 pm