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CHICAGO – Chicagoans aren’t getting their money’s worth for their police and fire departments, according to Illinois’s largest taxpayer organization, Taxpayers United of America (TUA).
“Our study of Chicago police and firefighter pensions shows that we are paying through the nose for a system that has failed us at every level,” said Jim Tobin, president of TUA.
“Chicago has some of the highest crime rates and most dangerous neighborhoods in the country, despite higher than average pay and benefits for its police officers. Being the second largest law enforcement agency in the United States, with some of the worst outcomes, it is a failure of epic proportions.”
“What are we getting for billions in unfunded pension liabilities? We are getting absolutely nothing but a huge property tax bill that pays for services rendered yesterday and leaves nothing for the services we need today.”
“We are paying cops and firefighters for more years of retirement than years of actual employment. This makes solvency of the pension system a mathematical impossibility.”
“These lavish pensions range as high as $150,000 annually, with an average police and firefighter retirement age of 57. The top 1,000 pensioners for the Chicago Police Department are collecting nearly $88 million from taxpayers annually and the top 1,000 Chicago Fire Department pensioners are collecting nearly $90 million from taxpayers annually. Reviewing this sampling of data underscores the unsustainability of these pension systems, and this economic crisis only gets worse as you factor in the entirety of our study of roughly 12,000 Chicago Police and Fire Department pensions.”
“There are thousands of retired Chicago cops getting more in pension payments than currently employed cops. It’s no mystery why the system is bust when you are paying people like retired CPD employee, Philip Cline, $158,932 per year to do absolutely nothing. This one pensioner makes more than three new hires.”
“Retired firefighter, James T. Joyce paid into his pension fund barely more than one year’s worth of pension benefits. His current annual pension payment of $151,814 could pay nearly three new hires for the fire department.”
· Click here to see the complete list of 9,192 CPD pensions
· Click here to see the complete list of 2, 822 CFD pensions
“The governments of Chicago and Illinois have failed us. Rank and file members would rally behind pension reform if their union bosses were honest with them about the bleak future of their pensions. It is in everyone’s best interest to solve the pension problem before the system completely collapses. It is no longer a matter of ‘if’ it will collapse, but when.”
“The solution is straightforward: Chicago must immediately place all new police and fire department hires into 401(k) style retirement savings accounts, increase member contributions to the fund, increase retirement age for full benefits, and increase member contributions to 50% of health care premiums. Anything short of these reforms will do nothing to permanently solve the problem plaguing the financial health of the city of Chicago and its taxpayers.”
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Illinois taxpayers may be blindsided by a January vote to make the 67% increase in the state income tax permanent, according to Jim Tobin, President of Taxpayers United of America.
“Outgoing Gov. Patrick Quinn (D), whom the Wall Street Journal has called the nation’s worst governor, just won’t go without creating more turmoil in his final days. Quinn has called a special session of the Ill. General Assembly for January 8 that will cost taxpayers $50,000,” said Tobin.
“Anything can happen in the lame duck special session, but what really worries me is what could happen after the new legislature convenes in January.”
“As of Jan. 1, the state personal income tax rate is scheduled to drop to 3.75 percent. The corporate tax rate, currently 9.5 percent, is scheduled to drop to 7.75 percent. Not one Republican voted for the tax hikes that are due to expire. But now there are rumblings that some Republicans may join Democrats in voting to extend the income tax hike – and the Democrats already have a majority in both chambers. The notorious State Senator Dave Syverson (R-35 Rockford) already has publically supported extending the income tax increase.”
“Illinois has the worst credit rating in the nation, thanks to the uncontrolled spending by Springfield Democrats. Its tax rates make it uncompetitive with other states, and extending the income tax hikes will continue to rob taxpayers of their hard-earned money to fund the lavish government pensions in Illinois.”
“Illinois taxpayers must quickly mobilize to kill any attempt to extend the state income tax increases. I urge them to call their state senators and representatives, especially the Republicans who are wavering on this issue, and demand that they oppose extending the state income tax hikes.”
“Gov. Patrick Quinn (D) has all but destroyed the financial condition of the state of Illinois. He has been totally incompetent. I wouldn’t trust Quinn to take care of my goldfish.”
Find your state representative and senator at the following link and urge them to reject any proposal to increase the Illinois state income tax:
http://www.elections.il.gov/DistrictLocator/DistrictOfficialSearchByAddress.aspx
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Before recently defeated Gov. Pat Quinn (D) leaves office, taxpayers urge that he veto SB 3341, a bill that passed through the state legislature December 3 and will increase the property tax bills of McHenry County taxpayers. According to the president of Taxpayers United of America (TUA), increased property taxes amount to strong-arm robbery.
“This legislation is insidious because it permits property tax increases without a referendum,” said Jim Tobin, TUA president.
Senate Bill 3341, sponsored by McHenry County State Rep. Michael W. Tryon (R-66) and State Sen. Pamela J. Althoff (R-32), allows the McHenry County Conservation District to borrow money without a property tax increase referendum.
“Gov. Quinn is leaving office with Illinois in a financial fiasco,” said Tobin. “If Quinn vetoes SB 3341 before he leaves office, it would be the most decent thing he can do for taxpayers, that is, until he vacates his government job.”
This legislation would lead to higher property tax bills to repay the bonds. If taxpayers do not immediately voice their opposition to SB 3341, Gov. Quinn will sign the legislation into law, and taxpayers in McHenry County will see higher property taxes in 2015 and beyond.
Gov. Quinn can be contacted by phone or mail at his Springfield and Chicago offices, as well as by email, by following this link: https://www2.illinois.gov/gov/Pages/ContacttheGovernor.aspx
