The Prairie State has been spending more than it takes in for a couple of decades now and the damage is apparent. Illinois regularly has a backlog of billions of dollars in unpaid bills. The Democrats' reward to the public-sector unions, generous pensions, have also wreaked a savage toll. Illinois' pension plans are among the most under-funded about the 50 states. And there is no way out of that hole under the current system. Breaking the mold there are three ways out. One is a federal bailout--not likely, in my opinion. Or a bankruptcy declaration. And a change in federal law needs to take place for that to occur. And finally, the best one, is an amendment to the state constitution that will allow legislators to lower pension payments. That's an amendment I'll back!
Those retirees earning modest pensions should be protected, in my opinion.
Yesterday Illinois' lieutenant governor, Juliana Stratton, pressing the panic button, is warning residents that they face a twenty-percent income tax hike if the pension bailout amendment, which is what I'm calling it, fails at the ballot box in November.
Stratton is a real peace of work. She defeated a rarity--a Springfield Democrat who worked with Republicans--in her Democratic state representative primary in 2016, That independent streak of her opponent, Ken Dunkin, was too much for Boss Michael Madigan, the state Democratic chairman and longtime statehouse speaker. Barack Obama, who was still president at the time, somehow found time, despite his voluminous other duties, to endorse Stratton in that primary.
Illinois voters--vote "No" on the pension bailout tax.
If Illinois politicians are ever given an unlimited budget--they will exceed it.
Illinois has been losing residents every year since 2014. It's easy to understand why.
No comments:
Post a Comment