Neighboring states gleeful over Ill. tax increase

AP ^ | 1/13/11 | Christopher Wells

[markomalley]

While many states consider boosting their economies with tax cuts, Illinois officials are betting on the opposite tactic: dramatically raising taxes to resolve a budget crisis that threatened to cripple state government.

Neighboring states gleefully plotted Wednesday to take advantage of what they consider a major economic blunder and lure business away from Illinois.

[flat]

AT least the state is working to pay off their pension promises and not trying to weasal out of their just debts like some other states are trying to do....i.e. petitioning courts to screw oldsters out of their just due....and before the flame throwing starts ....see if you all can wrap your heads around this...
.
THE STATE OF ILLINOIS DEFINED BENEFITS PENSION PLAN COST IS
27% BELOW THE NATIONAL AVERAGE

LETS REPEAT... THE PLAN IS

TWENTY-SEVEN PERCENT BELOW
THE NATIONAL AVERAGE.....!!!!

HERE ARE OTHER CRUCIAL STATE OF ILLINOIS PENSION MYTHS

....FOLLOW ALONG NOW:

!

Myth: Illinois has TOO MANY PUBLIC EMPLOYEES!
Reality: Illinois actually ranks 49th among the states, next to last in the nation, in number of state employees per capita.
Historically, Illinois has not been a high public employee head count state.

Instead, Illinois is mostly a grant making state
- that is, rather than hire state employees to provide services; Illinois disburses grants to independent providers such as
Lutheran Social Services or Catholic Charities, which in turn deliver the service to the public

Myth: Public employee benefits are TOOO GENEROUS!
Reality: For most Illinois public employees, their pension is all they receive upon retirement

NOT ONLY THAT- fully 78% are not covered by and do not receive Social Security. This is unlike workers in the private sector, who receive both Social
Security and private retirement benefits!

4. Myth: Illinois’ current defined benefit; THE SYSTEM IS TOO EXPENSIVE!

Reality: The ‘normal cost’ of a pension system is the contribution required from an employer to fund the plan’s benefits.

The weighted average ‘NORMAL COST’ across all five Illinois pension systems, as a percentage of active members’ payroll,
averages 9.13 percent.
The NATIONAL AVERAGE for state and local government is 12.5 PERCENT, placing the normal cost of
ILLINOIS’ current defined benefit program FAR BELOW THE NATIONAL AVERAGE!!!!

IT GETS CLEARER:

IL PENSION SYSTEM BENEFITS ARE ONLY ABOUT 49TH AS GOOD AS OTHER STATE PENSIONS
STATE HAS A NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES FAR FAR BELOW OTHER STATES
PENSIONS ARE ONLY 18K A YEAR AVERAGE AND BECAUSE OF PENSION

SYSTEM RULES... 78 % HAVE NO SOCIAL SECURITY EITHER....

IT GETS EVEN CLEARER:
UNTIL RECENT YEARS.....STATE EMPLOYEE PENSION BENEFITS RANKED

SECOND TO LAST....IN BENEFITS....

SO FOR YEARS AND YEARS STATE EMPLOYEE BENEFITS WERE

HOPELESSLY BELOW PAR....AND... EVEN NOW.....IT RANKS ONLY

AVERAGE....

HERE’S A URL WITH A VIDEO:

EDUCATE YOURSELF...
THE Center for Tax and Budget Accountability executive director Ralph

Martire tells us the truth....i challenge YOU to view this video:

http://progressillinois.com/2009/3/19/martire-pensions-gold-plated

The data make it clear that the state’s unfunded pension liability accrued to date was not caused by overly
generous benefits, high head counts, excessive costs or even poor investment returns. Instead, the real
culprit has been, and continues to be, the repeated failure of the state to make its full, annual employer
contribution to the systems. *

*READ THE ENTIRE Illinois Retirement Security Initiative
A Project of the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability

http://www.ctbaonline.org/All%20Links%20to%20Research%20Areas%20and%20Reports/Pension/DB%20vs%20%20DC%20MASTER.pdf

[cbkaty]

AT least the state is working to pay off their pension promises and not trying to weasal out of their just debts like some other states are trying to do....i.e. petitioning courts to screw oldsters out of their just due....

Just due? The people of Illinois know that their politician's spending put their pensions in jeopardy.....

Seems that a change in spending policy is the solution...not a tax increase.... The hogs will be back at the trough...and a new tax increase will be on the horizon...bet on it.

[steveyp]

Will Illinois make a full contribution to it’s pension this year? Ever?

[arderkrag]

Illinois chooses to shoot itself in the foot. Great move. Maybe next they can ask California for a bail-out.

[esoxmagnum]

I’m guessing you are a State of Illinois employee, or are related to one?

[cranked]

66% personal income tax increase, 2 plus % increase in state spending, nothing done to bust the pension bubble....talk about RATS leaving a sinking ship with their tails on fire.....lulz.

Kind of looking to Chicago to become the next Detroit courtesy of persistent libtard destructive idiotic policies. =.=

[RayChuang88]

Let’s see how the city government of Chicago makes a lot of “exceptions to the rule” to keep that city alive. Because Chicago is such an important transportation hub, it will unlikely go the way of Detroit.

[DuncanWaring]

The state of Illinois has high taxes, going higher.

According to the statements you posted, they’re not spending money.

Why are they broke?

Apparently, what you posted is a pack of lies.

The question, then, is “Are the lies of ommission or lies of commission?”.

[ThunderSleeps]

...dramatically raising taxes to resolve a budget crisis that threatened to cripple state government.

Did anyone consider that maybe the government needs to be "crippled" ... maybe even "reduced?" Why is that assumed to be a bad thing that must be avoided?

[raybbr]

"flat" has a Florida flag on his homepage. I'm guessing he's a retired IL state employee that doesn't even live in IL anymore.

Hey, "flat" why'd you leave IL?

[org.whodat]

Agree, I think a lot of that depends on what your definition of is is.

[DUMBGRUNT]

I have paid approximately 20% of my wages to retirement accounts for 39 years and another 12.4 % for social security (up to various limits, forever).
Illinois teachers pay just 9% no SS !

If my retirement plan were to be wiped out by Bear Stearns or AIG I would receive peanuts from an already broke pension board.

Why should I pay for this select group?

Also tell me about the pension for Stroger’s secretary?

[Publius Valerius]

Because Chicago is such an important transportation hub, it will unlikely go the way of Detroit

Chicago has things going for it that Detroit didn't, that's for certain. But Cleveland was once an important transportation hub. Look at it now. Cleveland was also once as big as Chicago. Chicago is not immune from collapse, but it probably wouldn't be as quick and obvious as Detroit. More like Cleveland--a slow decline over several decades.

[KevinDavis]

I don’t owe those bums jack...

[thackney]

Cleveland was also once as big as Chicago.

When did Cleveland have a population near that of Chicago?

[reagan_fanatic]

And what do you think the end result of Illinois mismanagement of its funds will be? Wanna guess? How about a declining middle class and lost jobs due to businesses relocating in other states or just leaving? As other states gradually rise out of this recession, Illinois will be left behind, mired in policies that scare away business and punish taxpayers.

We, along with California, have become the laughingstock of the nation. Unfortunately for us still LIVING HERE, we’ll have to suffer for the stupidity of our elected officials who, with the passage of the tax increase, has hammered the last nail into this state’s coffin.

[thackney]

Cleveland was also once as big as Chicago.

170 years ago.

http://physics.bu.edu/~redner/projects/population/cities/chicago.html

http://physics.bu.edu/~redner/projects/population/cities/cleveland.html

Back when Cleveland was a powerhouse community of 6 thousand people.

[dforest]

Mitch Daniels is already working on reeling them in per Cavuto’s Show last night.

One state’s trash is another state’s treasure. Or is that Treasury?

[Graybeard58]

Sounds almost as good as my U.A.W. "Cadillac" pension plan. After 31 years I receive $1235 per month, from which is deducted $364 per month for some of the crappiest health insurance imaginable.

It's true, that's in addition to S.S.

For my $4368 annual premium I get a $300 deductible for each family member after that it's 80/20 until a max out of pocket of $1,000 per family member.

E.R. visits have their own deductibles and co pays,as does ambulance service. I got hearing aids in '09, cost $5,000, insurance paid $500. Orthodontic for my dependent $6,000, for which my insurance paid $1,500. Office calls are not covered period, nor do they count against any deductibles.

In 2009, I had a little more than $16,000 deduction on my fed tax for out of pocket medical expenses.

I still can't afford "free" government insurance and I'm not really complaining because I'm thankful for what I have. I just get a little sick of seeing "U.A.W. "Cadillac pension benefits" and thank God that I have other means, that I took into consideration before retiring, including a 401K plan, that I alone contributed to and was smart enough to move from 401K when I retired in Dec. 1999, (pre tech boom crash) to an account that I manage conservatively. Plus my wife's 6 figure salary which always helps.

I did not take her salary into account in my retirement decision. We could get along just fine without it.

Things are not always what they seem friend and I know you've caught heat for making your reply. The only thing comparable you could have replied, would have been that you are a U.A.W. retiree.

I too live in Illinois (Central) and my wife and I are looking for a home in Missouri, where it is not a felony to think about guns, as it is here in Illinois.