April 12, 2010
Illinois Does Pension Reform
George Will's latest contains this information about pension reform in Illinois (not Texas, union-friendly, "progressive" Illinois):
Gov. Pat Quinn called it a "political earthquake" when the state's Legislature recently voted -- by margins of 92-17 in the House and 48-6 in the Senate -- to reform pensions for state employees. There is now a cap on the amount of earnings that can be used as the basis for calculating benefits. In some states, employees game the system by "spiking" their last year's earnings by accumulating vast amounts of overtime pay.Where there's a will, there's a way.An even more important change -- a harbinger of America's future -- is that most new Illinois state government employees must work until age 67 in order to be eligible for full retirement benefits. Those already on the state payroll can still retire at 55 with full benefits.
WTF??? Illinois is union-friendly progressive? Dude, that's just pathetic.
Posted by: Pat Crowley at April 12, 2010 8:43 PMSomeone correct me if I am wrong, but didn't Gov. Carcieri enact pension reform and get the GA to approve changes that:
1. From this day forward you must be 65 to collect retirement if you didn't meet a vested calendar deadline to retire.
2. All future COLA will be based on average cost of living index not to exceed 3% instead of blanket firm-fixed 3% (you must wait for 3 years in retirement before collecting COLA annually every January 1st).
3. Average salary calculations will be based on last 5 years of service instead of last 3 years.
What is the problem?
Gov. Carcieri and GA already cut state and teacher retirement income by almost 25%!
I mean some of these people will now have to serve the state of RI and local communities till they are at least 65 years old which they may have to work in some cases 45 years (constantly being bombarded with how bad they are at work and suck the blood of the taxpayer for the unions) to receive an approximately 25% reduced pension when prior it was 30 years and the private and military standard is 20 years.
Continue hacking away at state, municipal and teacher benefits, wages and RI you'll have to learn another language to talk on the phone or in person and on the Internet to state , municipal or school teachers. If I remember right, slavery in the USA was banned over 200 years ago!
State of Hawaii also has an unfunded liability about equal or more to RI because of state failure to make payments which the union went to court and won settlement against the state. State of Hawaii is now on a payback plan and that is not an issue with the current GOP governor unlike RI. The current GOP Gov. is trying to dismantle the whole HI school system and make it appointed by the Gov. Talk about teaching and being there for the children!
Let's get real people, you get the quality service you pay for and politically play with!
In Hawaii over 850 state employees have been let go. State government is shut down every Friday including the total state-wide public school and college system (private schools are still operating) because the public school system falls under State of Hawaii control and to balance the state budget deficit due to the recession and you mainlanders not vacationing in Hawaii providing sales tax income to the general fund but right now the governor of HI and GOP are taking the heat for balancing the state budget in the backs of school children when the Gov. has the extra funds to release putting the school children back in school every Friday but blaming the teachers and the union!
This is going to be a bad state to run in for the GOP because the parents are livid!