Illinois has one of the worst pension messes in the nation as the cost of government employee benefits is sending state, county, and local governments into bankruptcy crises all across the state. No place has more trouble than Chicago, prompting Mayor Rahm Emanuel to warn that property taxes will have to double to serve that spiraling debt.
In 2015 Chicago faces a looming financial disaster with a municipal pension system that is in worse shape than that of any other major U.S. city. Chicago is under the gun for a whopping $1.07 billion balloon payment on its $19.4 billion pension debt for city employees. Chicago's mayor is struggling to figure out how to pay the balloon payment, which is equal to one third of the city's entire budget. According to The Wall Street Journal, the balloon payment alone could pay for the salaries of the Chicago Police Department's entire 4,300 officer force or for the re-paving of all 16,000 blocks of roads in the city.
The city fathers have made some furtive attempts to address the crisis.
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5 comments:
That's what they get for voting for Democratic mayors for over 60 years in a row.
You reap what you sow.
Democratic Death Spiral!
Revenues are down - increase the tax rate.
People are leaving because we raised the tax rate - increase the taxes on the ones that haven't left.
Nobody left pays taxes anymore - declare bankruptcy so we can start over.
Sound familiar? It's what happened to Detroit....Salisbury's next!
Increasing the property taxes double. How insane is that. Unfortunately he will get re-elected by those who don't pay taxes.
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