View as PDF Chicago—Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner delivered his second budget address before the General Assembly today, giving the first-term Republican another prominent opportunity to outline his plans for resolving Illinois’ protracted budget impasse by implementing structural reforms to the state government.
Taxpayers United of America’s (TUA) director of operations, Jared Labell, said that “Rauner is correctly imploring the Illinois General Assembly to immediately pass a balanced budget for the good of all Illinois residents and taxpayers.”
“Gov. Rauner’s address lacked the flowery campaign rhetoric from just one year ago, due in large part to the severity of the financial catastrophe the state is currently facing, and after decades of predictable governmental mismanagement. Rauner is absolutely right in his assessment that the only fiscally sound path forward for Illinois is for the legislature to pass economic and governmental reforms, while negotiating spending reductions and revenue concerns,” said Labell.
“Rauner must also be praised for standing firm and allowing the Illinois state income tax to fall by twenty-five percent when he first took office in January 2015, sunsetting a portion of the 2011 sixty-seven percent income tax hike imposed by former governor – and incessant political hack – Pat Quinn (D),” said Labell. “The state income tax is an economically crippling juggernaut and we are glad to hear that Rauner is not considering hiking it now or supporting a new state income tax on retirement income at this time.”
“I won’t support new revenue unless we have major structural reforms to grow more jobs and get more value for taxpayers. I’m insisting that we attack the root causes of our dismal economic performance,” Rauner remarked early in his budget address. He explained further, “Those are the dynamics.”
“That leaves us with only two choices: either you give the executive branch the authority to cut spending to live within our revenues. Or, we agree – together – on economic and governmental reforms, to accompany a negotiated balance of spending reductions and revenue that ensures that Illinois can be both compassionate and competitive. You choose. But please, choose now,” added Rauner.
“Attacking the root of Illinois’ atrocious economic reality is right on target. Taxpayers United of America will provide further analysis of the proposed budget, and the certain ongoing battle in the Illinois General Assembly, in the coming days and weeks,” said Labell. “Rauner makes a point that is reminiscent of a passage from Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, which taxpayers would be wise to emulate. ‘There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.’”
“It is our duty, as long as we must toil under this government, to stand up for our lives, liberty, and property, ensuring that the government does not grow to be destructive of those ends. This is a start, but the fight is far from over,” concluded Labell.
CHICAGO—Taxpayers United of America (TUA) today released the results of their updated analysis of Illinois’ General Assembly Retirement System (GARS).
“For more than four decades, Madigan and his ilk have enshrined the theft of taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars in an unsustainable government pension system at the expense of everyone else in Illinois. This is not a retirement system or a safety net for civil servants. This is theft, protected by government edicts and perpetuated by the immoral and unethical tax thieves that shuffle through the revolving doors in Springfield,” said Jim Tobin, founder and President of TUA.
“If Boss Madigan cared one bit about his constituents, we would have had pension reform decades ago, not to mention a current state budget, and then perhaps we wouldn’t have a pension crisis at all.”
“Let’s be clear about what this pension cabal is and what it is not. Six-figure government retiree pensions are not ‘for the children.’ This system isn’t about the ‘poor civil servants,’ and it certainly isn’t about fairness. The government pension Ponzi scheme is about the reelection of powerful legislators, the expansion of their voter base, and the money that pours in from donations,” said Tobin. “Just a quick look at some statistics from the GARS pension data analysis will shock Illinois residents and taxpayers.”
“For 2019 and 2020, two GARS pensions exceed $200,000. From 2019 to 2020, the number of pensions exceeding $100,000 has gone from 62 to 71, and the number exceeding $50,000 has gone from 218 to 221. The highest annual pension, $265,428, goes to retired legislator Arthur L. Berman (D), the author of the failed Berman Tax Increase Amendment, which we helped defeat years ago. Berman’s total pension paid to date is $3,670,815.”
“A central figure responsible for much of the pension crisis is former governor James R. Thompson (R), one of the worst tax-raisers in Illinois history. Thompson currently receives an annual pension of $165,987. He has received a total pension to date of $3,219,842. His estimated lifetime pension payout is $3,385,829.”
“Former governor, Patrick J. Quinn Jr. (D), the so-called “reform” governor, currently receives an annual pension of $149,882. He has received a total pension to date of $694,733. His estimated lifetime pension payout is $3,255,658.”
“Former legislator and governor, James R. Edgar (R), receives a current annual pension of $175,952. He has received a total pension to date of $2,502,093, and his estimated lifetime pension payout is $4,755,649.”
“Edgar signed into law Senate Bill 3 in 1998, the biggest government pension increase in the history of Illinois. SB3 gave retired government teachers 75% of their salary at retirement, with annual compounded increases of 3 percent. SB3 will cost taxpayers $4.5 billion in 2020, which is 12% of the Illinois state budget!”
“John Kass of the Chicago Tribune often refers to Illinois’ Speaker of the House as the Khan of Madiganistan, and for good reason. Madigan conducts himself like a warlord and has done so for decades. If he had an ethical bone in his body, he never would have supported the Constitutional Amendment that launched the era of runaway government pensions and began the state’s financial downward spiral. Even after that woeful Constitutional Convention in 1970, the Khan of Madiganistan has had countless opportunities while in his leadership role as Speaker of the house and as a legislator for the past 45 years to limit the perks given to state retirees, much less reform the system that is driving taxpayers from the state like refugees seeking a fresh start.”
“It is criminal that our legislature, under Madigan’s leadership, allows this to continue,” said Tobin. “Part-time legislator pensions shouldn’t be as lavish as our data shows, but unfortunately for taxpayers, this is the financial trouble we are facing.”
Click here to see the top 200 list of GARS pensioners
“It is plain to see the conflict of interest in having legislators, who are supposed to vote on our behalf, benefit from the very system that enriches them and impoverishes the rest of Illinois. There are a handful of legislators in the current General Assembly with some moral fiber who have declined to participate in the pension system, and we applaud their integrity, but that short list does not include Boss Madigan, the Khan of Madiganistan.”
“Are you listening, Speaker Madigan? Where is the government pension reform? Where do your loyalties lie?” Tobin challenged, “Before the Illinois General Assembly considers even discussing a new income tax on retirement benefits or raising the state income tax, the state’s political elite better be aware that residents won’t stand for it, and Taxpayers United of America will lead the charge against the continued pillaging of taxpayers.”
*Lifetime estimated pension payout includes 3% compounded COLA and assumes life expectancy of 85 (IRS Form 590).
View as PDF Chicago—Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner delivered his second State of the State address to the Illinois General Assembly today, beginning his second year as governor by outlining a number of ambitious priorities for his administration in the coming months. Jared Labell, director of operations for Taxpayers United of America (TUA), said that taxpayers should be pleased by a number of proposals in the speech, but uncertainty will remain until actual legislative action is taken.
“Taxpayers should applaud Gov. Rauner for recognizing that the state of Illinois simply cannot raise taxes to solve generations of governmental mismanagement,” said Labell. “State and local government reform in Illinois must be structural and address the systemic problems Illinoisans have dealt with for decades. Priorities must include, but are not limited to: term limits, redistricting reform, property tax relief, education reform, solving Illinois’ government pension crisis, consolidating taxing districts and government units, and enabling Illinois to be much more competitive in business to encourage economic growth.”
Gov. Rauner understands the struggle at hand, saying in his speech that, “Change is hard. Reform is difficult. But we can’t just raise taxes again. We know that doesn’t work. While the 2011 tax hike was in place, our credit rating was downgraded five times, we barely made a dent in our bill backlog, state support for schools was cut, our unfunded pension liabilities went up $28 billion, and our economic growth fell to almost half the national average. Raising taxes without improving our ability to compete will not help the people of Illinois, and in fact, it will make things worse.”
“Although Illinois is facing significant economic trouble and gridlock in government at all levels, taxpayers should be pleased to hear that Gov. Rauner and Senate President Cullerton (D) are currently working together with their respective staffs to introduce legislation addressing government pension reform, currently said to save taxpayers $1 billion annually,” said Labell.
“We will have to wait until this legislation is made public to know how substantive the reforms will be, as is the case with the other proposals outlined in today’s address, but this could be a sign that the state budget impasse – which is quickly approaching its eighth month – is closer to a resolution without hiking state income taxes or creating a new state income tax on retirement income. Illinois must become an economic phoenix to leave its financial catastrophes far behind, but that will require legislators to champion the struggles of taxpayers by allowing business to flourish and create more jobs to improve Illinois’ economy and the livelihood of its residents.”
Gov. Rauner will deliver his budget address to the Illinois General Assembly on February 17.
