67% State Income Tax Hike to Fund Perry County Retired Government Employee Pension Millionaires

PERRY COUNTY–A new report by the Illinois Taxpayers Education Foundation reveals that many Perry County retired government employees receive lavish, gold-plated pensions that far exceed average annual wages of workers in the private sector.
“These outrageous government-employee pensions are bankrupting the state,” said Jim Tobin, President of National Taxpayers United of Illinois (NTUI). “Gov. Patrick Quinn (D) just raised the state personal income tax 67%, all $6.8 billion taxpayer dollars of which is being used to fund the state’s appalling pensions. Only democrats voted in favor of the 67% income tax increase, and it is because of this that all democrats must be thrown out of office.”

“Those receiving the largest annual pensions are retired government-school educators,” said Tobin. “Perry County’s retired public school teachers in the Teachers Retirement System (TRS) are really raking it in. The largest annual TRS pension goes to George Edwards, formerly of Pinckneyville SD 50, whose annual pension is $86,487 — $7,207 a month. Sandra Jerrells, formerly of CHSD 101, receives a monthly pension of $6,219, making her annual pension $74,624. Charles Swinney, formerly of Duquoin CUSD 300, receives an annual pension of $62,167, a staggering accumulation of $1,119,005 to date!”
“These retired government employees are sucking the system dry. But there is no need to raise the state income tax or cut government services. Three crucial reforms can save the system and spare Illinois taxpayers. First, new government hires should be put into social security and required to fund their own retirements with 401(k) plans. Ending pensions for new government hires will eventually eliminate unfunded government pensions.”
“Second, in Illinois, if each current state pension fund employee were required to contribute an additional 10% to his or her pension, taxpayers would save over $150 billion over the next 35 years. And finally, requiring Illinois public employees to pay for one-half of their health care premiums would save even more – an estimated $230 billion over current projections.”
Click here to view Perry County’s top TRS and IMRF pensions.
Click here to view this statement as a PDF.