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| Illinois is broken |
From the Chicago Tribune:
A former state lawmaker who is accused of trading child pornography online has started collecting a state pension of nearly $15,000 a year — an amount he bumped up by purchasing credit for time he didn't work.Technorati tags:
Ex-Rep. Keith Farnham, an Elgin Democrat, is the latest Illinois lawmaker to rake in pension checks while facing federal criminal charges. Former Democratic Rep. Connie Howard of Chicago stands to reap $115,000 in the two years between her resignation and sentencing this summer.
It's allowed under state law; former public officials don't automatically lose their state pensions until sentencing is on the books. One watchdog group, however, says the pension checks of ex-lawmakers facing criminal charges should be frozen at the minimal monthly level while their cases play out. And making payments to boost an annual pension, as Farnham did, should be banned pending the outcome of a criminal case, according to the group.
"Nobody can stand by and watch this happen and feel good about it," said retired Democratic Sen. Susan Garrett of Lake Forest, who now chairs the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, a government watchdog organization.
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