Category Archives: Public Pensions

Debt Option #3: Bankruptcy

BANKRUPT: bank·rupt  /ˈbaNGkˌrəpt/ adjective: bankrupt (of a person or organization) declared in law unable to pay outstanding debts. . By all conventional measures, Illinois is bankrupt. The State Supreme Court would disagree, having said in its decision to strike down … Continue reading

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Debt Option #2: Amend the Constitution

The previous post dealt with a proposal to address the issue of our debt, laying out a “front-loaded” increase in payments to our pension debt so as to avoid ever-increasing payments due in future years. That post was written under … Continue reading

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Debt Option #1: Front-Loading Pension Payments

Long before I was elected to the House, I’ve been talking about Illinois’ pension crisis (here, here, here and here, to name a few). Since that time, our accumulated pension debt has risen from “just” over $100 billion to somewhere … Continue reading

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What to Do About Illinois’ Debt (And Death is Not an Option)

With more than $7 billion of unpaid bills and (depending on who you ask) $130-$200 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, a credit rating hovering just above “junk” status and people and businesses fleeing in droves, there are no easy answers … Continue reading

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My New Year’s Wish for Illinois

It’s January 1, and we’re a little over a week from starting a new General Assembly and less than two weeks from swearing in a new Governor. Republicans in Springfield have no choice but to hope that despite being in … Continue reading

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