A proposal by the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, a Chicago nonprofit advocacy group, suggests that taking 43 years to make the plans fully funded, instead of the normal 30 years, would reduce annual pension payments to a feasible level. Requiring equal annual payments instead of back-loading contributions to later years would make it more fiscally responsible than the state's current plans.
“The only thing they can do that's rational is re-amortizing the debt they owe,” said Ralph Martire, CTBA's executive director. “It works and it's constitutional. The only people who will yell and scream are the actuaries.”
Pension reform, RIP?
In a case with ominous implications for the state's pension reform law, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled today that the state constitution prevents any diminishment of health care benefits for retired state employees.
The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state cannot reduce retirement benefits for public employees. While the ruling is good news for them, it appears to be bad news for state and local taxpayers.
So, Illinois’ fiscal woes are the fault of — us?
We expect elected officials to address societal needs with well-designed, effective policy initiatives. Of course, the overtly political milieu in which public policy is created usually frustrates this expectation.
FOX 32 Sunday talks with Greg Baise, President of the Illinois Manufacturers Association, and Ralph Martire, Executive Director for the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, about the budget the General Assembly sent to Governor Quinn, as well as individual and corporate taxation, educational equity, pensions, healthcare, human services, and more in the face of the Legislature adjourning without taking care of the temporary tax increases.
Illinois lawmakers are scrambling to cut billions of dollars from the state budget. It follows the apparent collapse of efforts to postpone an income tax cut scheduled to take effect next New Year’s Day.
Income Tax
Now 5%
Jan 1st: 3.75%
To inform the community about the proposed legislation (Senate Bill 16, or SB16), the Education Coalition of Macon County hosted a public forum Thursday evening in the Decatur Civic Center entitled, “Transforming Our Schools: A Panel on Funding Reform.” The panel consisted of Sen. Manar; Decatur Public Schools Director of Business Affairs Dr. Todd Covault; Warrensburg-Latham School District Superintendent Kristen Kendrick; and Ralph Martire, Executive Director of the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability. The event was moderated by Bill Wheelhouse of WIUS radio station and Brian Byers of local station WSOY, and was sponsored by ADM, WSOY, and the Herald & Review.
Ralph Martire, executive director of the Center for Tax and Budget Acountability, speaks about Illinois school funding during a forum at the Decatur Civic Center. Pictured from left are Martire, state Sen. Andy Manar, Warrensburg-Latham Superintendent Kristen Kendrick and Todd Covault, director of business affairs for the Decatur School District.
Senator Manar is the driving force behind Senate Bill 16, which seeks to change the distribution of education funds but not the amount. Addressing the amount of funds is an issue to be dealt with later, he said at a forum held on Thursday in the Decatur Civic Center Theater. The forum was sponsored by Archer Daniels Midland Co., WSOY and the Herald & Review. The first order of business is to change the current model of distribution.
When state and local fiscal systems are not designed to work in a modern economy, government must turn to smaller user taxes to fill budget holes to provide needed services, services that really should be funded by primary revenue.