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Staggering debt obligations of House’s pension reform should require 60% approval
Representatives of organized labor in Illinois contend that the pension-reform bill recently passed by the House would be unconstitutional because it diminishes or impairs the claims of retirees. I think it’s probably unconstitutional for a very different reason. Our Legislature can spend money by simply …Read More
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The problem with Madigan’s pension plan
The pension reform bill pushed through the Illinois House Thursday by Speaker Mike Madigan has some very good things about it, but also one bad thing. On the positive side, we are told that unfunded liabilities would be reduced from about $98 billion to perhaps …Read More
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Even after proposed pension fix, Illinois still would be broke
As Illinois staggers painfully toward pension reform, the suggestion appears in some news accounts and editorials that if Springfield would just pass one of the pending proposals — the Nekritz-Cross-Biss (NCB) version — then we could all breathe a deep sigh of relief. Illinois’ finances …Read More
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Gov. Quinn’s union deal adds to our woes
Gov. Pat Quinn says he was put on earth to solve our state’s underfunded-pension problem. Yet he’s now made that problem worse. At a time when the State of Illinois is literally broke and inflation not much above zero, Quinn (who is facing a primary …
‘Balanced budget’ in Illinois is a fraud
Time for our Civics Class to come to order again. Gov. Pat Quinn on Wednesday will propose a state budget for the coming fiscal year, which begins July 1. The Illinois General Assembly will pass a budget this spring. Can anyone tell me whether our …
Pension mess isn’t Mike Madigan’s fault
Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan has taken a journalistic thwacking for many supposed sins — including allowing the State of Illinois to sink into a fiscal cesspool. In particular, he is allegedly responsible for allowing the state’s unfunded pension liabilities to rise to levels where …
