This article discussed the challenges municipalities across Illinois face in dealing with their growing pension obligations. The article offered a number of examples where the burden of pensions has resulted in credit downgrades and recounts cases in which extraordinary measures have been taken to make pension payments. In exploring possible solutions, the article outlined an initiative from the Civic Federation and the Illinois Municipal League to consolidate the more than 650 downstate public…
This article covered Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's call for a constitutional amendment, $10 billion in pension obligation bonds and new revenue from legalizing and taxing marijuana and a Chicago casino to stabilize the City of Chicago's pension crisis. In response, Civic Federation President Laurence Msall said that gambling and taxing marijuana are not reliable revenue sources. He further noted that the Mayor's proposal illustrates the fact that any new revenue streams will likely be…
The Illinois General Assembly passed a budget for fiscal year 2019 on May 31, 2018 and Governor Rauner signed it into law on June 4, 2018. The Institute for Illinois' Fiscal Sustainability has since then continued to analyze the enacted State of Illinois budget, releasing periodic updates via the IIFS blog. All of the enacted budget content is gathered on this page for readers’ convenience. Illinois Passes Budget on Time; Fiscal Challenges Remain Originally published June 8, 2018…
2019 Civic Federation Legislative Priorities The Civic Federation's legislative priorities for 2019 include public employee pension reforms, consolidation of local government units in Illinois, enacting policies to rationalize the property tax system, creation of a Local Government Protection Authority, requiring the State of Illinois to build a rainy day fund, development and implementation of a capital improvement plan and improved…
Illinois’ contributions to its severely underfunded retirement systems are expected to increase significantly in the upcoming budget year, but the numbers could change due to pension buyout plans that have yet to be implemented. Proposed State contributions to the five pension funds are $9.1 billion in fiscal year 2020, which begins on July 1, 2019. That represents an increase of $679.9 million, or 8.0%, from the $8.5 billion in contributions originally required in the current fiscal year.…
(CHICAGO) In a report released today, the Civic Federation announced support for Cook County’s proposed FY2019 budget. The $5.9 billion budget proposal is structurally balanced without raising new taxes and continues the practice of making supplemental pension payments. The full report is available here. “Overall, this budget is a prudent plan for the coming year—but it fails to set its sights much further,” said Civic Federation President Laurence Msall. “While there are many positive aspects…
Click here to read the full report. The Civic Federation supports Cook County’s proposed FY2019 budget of $5.9 billion because it is structurally balanced without raising new taxes and continues the practice of making supplemental pension payments. The Federation is encouraged by the County’s strong level of fund balance reserves and its commitment to performance-based budgeting and mid-year preliminary forecast hearings. The Federation further applauds the County’s continued…
Since Illinois passed its budget for the current fiscal year, many questions have been raised about the $445 million in savings expected from enacted pension changes. What is the basis for the savings estimate and how accurate is it likely to be? The assumed reductions in State pension contributions are the result of three provisions in the FY2019 budget legislation. The most important is a voluntary buyout plan that offers certain employees who are about to retire upfront cash payments—in…
After three years of political gridlock and missed deadlines, the Illinois General Assembly passed a budget for the coming fiscal year on the last day of its regular spring session. Governor Bruce Rauner promptly signed the budget amid bipartisan celebration. Although the $38.5 billion budget for fiscal year 2019 is roughly balanced on paper, concerns persist about whether the revenue and spending estimates are realistic. The budget assumes savings of $382 million from a new pension buyout…
This article briefly summarizes the ongoing financial struggles in the City of Harvey, which were recently exacerbated when the Illinois Comptroller was required to intercept the City’s tax revenue to pay its public safety pension contributions. The article points out that a number of Illinois municipalities are facing similar pressures and are relying on “last-ditch efforts” to make pension payments. Civic Federation President Laurence Msall said that the State of Illinois must provide support…
