The State of Illinois currently pays the entire bill for health insurance premiums for 90% of retired state workers. Under Illinois law, retirees with at least 20 years of government service and their survivors do not have to pay any portion of their health insurance premiums. Governor Pat Quinn’s FY2011 budget includes a proposal to save state taxpayers $254.5 million by requiring all retirees to pay part of their premium costs. For some retirees, the new expense would be substantial. Health…
Although some national economic indicators suggest that the global recession, which began in December 2007, is showing signs of a gradual recovery, many state budgets are more stressed than ever and have little hope for significant economic gains in the coming fiscal year. The most recent report from the National Council of Economic Advisors, published in February, shows a turnaround in national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) beginning in the third financial quarter of 2009 and continuing in the…
The Civic Federation supports the Illinois General Assembly’s first steps toward comprehensive public pension reform in Illinois and urges state leaders to implement further reforms. On Wednesday, March 24, 2010, the Illinois General Assembly took the first important steps toward comprehensive public pension reform in Illinois by approving Senate Bill 1946 as amended by the Illinois House. The bill now awaits approval by Governor Quinn. While the reforms contained in the legislation do not…
The Civic Federation supports the Illinois General Assembly’s first steps toward comprehensive public pension reform in Illinois and urges state leaders to implement further reforms. On Wednesday, March 24, 2010, the Illinois General Assembly took the first important steps toward comprehensive public pension reform in Illinois by approving Senate Bill 1946 as amended by the Illinois House. The bill now awaits approval by Governor Quinn. While the reforms contained in the legislation do not…
Federal healthcare reform could increase the State of Illinois’ Medicaid enrollment by 400,000 to 600,000 recipients beginning in 2014, but the federal government is expected to pay nearly all the additional cost for newly eligible recipients. The new law would extend Medicaid coverage to all nonelderly individuals with incomes below 133% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) in 2014. The FPL is now $10,830 for a family of one and $22,050 for a family of four. Under the new law, the…
Governor Pat Quinn’s recommended FY2011 budget, issued on March 10, 2010, proposes borrowing $4.7 billion to cover FY2011’s projected operating deficit. No details about the Governor’s borrowing plan have yet been made available. However, the budget proposal states that borrowing would be preferable to increasing the State of Illinois’ backlog of unpaid bills by roughly the same amount because unpaid bills cause financial stress for vendors and require the State to pay 1% a month in interest…
Although the proposed FY2011operating budget for the State of Illinois, which includes a $4.7 billion annual deficit and carrying forward $6 billion in unpaid bills, has garnered the most attention since being released on March 10, 2010, Governor Pat Quinn also proposed an expansion of the capital budget in FY2011. The Governor’s proposed capital budget for FY2011 comes on the heels of a massive increase in annual capital appropriation totaling $30.5 billion in FY2010 and recommends an…
The total unfunded liabilities of the ten major Chicago-area public pension funds reached $18.5 billion in fiscal year 2008. That is an increase of over $15.1 billion dollars in ten years, up from $3.4 billion in fiscal year 1999. To put $18.5 billion in perspective, it is $5,821 of unfunded pension liabilities per Chicago resident. The debt grows to $10,037 per person when you add the State pension funds. The unfunded liability for the four City of Chicago pension funds alone is $…
The Civic Federation has received an overwhelming response from the residents of Illinois to our recently-released “Fiscal Rehabilitation Plan for the State of Illinois,” including scores of emails and telephone calls. The Civic Federation has taken into consideration your comments, recommendations, praise and criticism. While not all the feedback we have received has agreed with the Civic Federation’s recommendations, the report has fulfilled our goal of contributing to an urgent discussion…
