Pension Changes in the FY2018 Budget: Short-Term Savings and Long-Term Costs
Release: October 10, 2017
The changes made to Illinois public pension systems in Public Act (PA) 100-0023 (introduced as Senate Bill 42), the Budget Implementation Act, or BIMP, passed on July 6, 2017, and include two primary elements. First, the BIMP creates a new Tier 3 level of benefits for public sector workers. Second, the BIMP permits the state to smooth out the fiscal impact of the actuarial reduction in the assumed rate of return generated by the state’s five pension systems.
New Details Emerge on Illinois' "Tier 3" Pension Plan
Release: September 27, 2017
Illinois' fiscal year 2018 budget introduced major changes to the state's public pension systems in an attempt to grapple with Illinois' roughly $130 billion in unfunded liabilities. One of the most important aspects of these changes was a new package of benefits. This new package, called "Tier 3," introduced a hybrid defined benefit-defined contribution plan in addition to the defined benefit plans of Tier 1 and Tier 2.
How Much Are State Pension Payments Worth to Illinois School Districts?
Release: June 23, 2017
Every school district in Illinois except for the Chicago Public Schools has its teacher pension payments made by the state as a consolidated payment to the Teachers Retirement System. Because of this, it is difficult to determine how much money these pension payments are worth to individual districts. CTBA has created per-district estimates for both normal cost (the payment that covers benefits being earned by current employees) and legacy cost (the debt service payment to make up for previous years' underfunding).
Public Pensions: Frequently Asked Questions
Release: January 21, 2016
Ever want to know what the average pension is for a state employee? What’s a funding ratio, and what are the funding ratios for the different pension funds? How much did benefit increases cost the pension systems? How much did investment losses contribute to pension underfunding? What’s the biggest factor for underfunded public pensions in Illinois?
We’ve got answers to those questions and many more in this convenient document, "Public Pensions: Frequently Asked Questions."
It Is All About Revenue: A Common Sense Solution for Illinois’ Fiscal Solvency
Release: September 9, 2015
This Report offers a solution to Illinois' longstanding fiscal shortcomings. There are a number of common sense, data-driven initiatives that will modernize the tax code—and still keep Illinois relatively low tax. The Report details how changes to Illinois' tax policy, primarily to its income and sales taxes, and re-amortizing its pension debt can completely eliminate its structural deficit.