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PBGC Assumes Responsibility for Seven Pension Plans of the Chicago Sun-Times

Excerpt: The PBGC said it took action because the company sold substantially all of its assets in bankruptcy proceedings and the buyer did not assume the plans.

Illinois Legislature Overrides Governor's Veto of Chicago Pension Bill

"[T]he Illinois House on Monday voted 72-43 to override [Gov. Bruce] Rauner's veto of the Chicago police and fire pension bill ... The action came just hours after the Illinois Senate voted 39-19 to override the bill. It will now become law.... Rauner blasted the bill, which defers city payments to the pension funds, as financially irresponsible by merely kicking the can down the road. [Chicago Mayor Rahm] Emanuel said Rauner's veto, if sustained, would have meant a $300 million property tax hike for city property owners, which Emanuel quickly dubbed the 'Rauner Tax.' "

Chicago's Unfunded Pension Debt Rises Again: Now at $37 Billion

"Chicago's unfunded pension liability rose by another 5.2% in 2023 -- from $35.4 billion to $37.2 billion -- thanks to 'changes in pension assumptions and legislation,' according to the certified annual financial report for 2023 by the accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche."

Chicago Firefighters Push Pension Bill That Could Saddle City with $30 Million in Annual Costs

"The Chicago Firefighters Union Local 2 is making a renewed push to increase retirement benefits for 2,200 of its members at a heavy cost to taxpayers: $18 million the first year and $30 million every year after that.... [The proposal] would remove the 'birth date restriction' that has prohibited roughly 2,200 active and retired firefighters born after Jan. 1, 1966 from receiving a simple, 3% annual cost of living increase. Instead, they get half that amount -- an annual increase of 1.5% that is not compounded."

Chicago Mayor Tries to Prove Tax Plan Sufficient to Save Pension Fund

"Mayor Rahm Emanuel released an actuarial analysis in hopes of proving to aldermen that his 29.5 percent tax on water and sewer bills will be enough to save the largest of Chicago's four city employee pension funds.... Civic Federation President Laurence Msall said ... the infusion of $1 billion in new revenue from the new utility tax by 2023 will put the city's largest pension fund in a 'significantly better place.' But Msall noted that even with that windfall ... the condition of the pension fund will continue to drop over the next five years with 'more benefits going out than coming in.' "

Chicago Teacher Pension Fund Overpaid 234 Retirees, Wants Its Money Back

"[T]he pension fund's administrators miscalculated benefits for the 234 retirees and mistakenly gave them lump-sum payments ranging from $566 to $217,185 as back pay between 2012 and 2014, when the error was discovered ... [R]etirees were contacted last year and told they had to return the money either by paying the amount back in full or in monthly increments through reduced pension payouts until the money was repaid."

Chicago Mayor Determined to Craft New Pension Deal After Court Ruling

"[T]he Illinois Supreme Court overturned [Chicago mayor Rahm] Emanuel's plan to raise employee contributions by 29 percent and end compounded cost-of-living adjustments.... But the ruling also stated, 'The pension protection clause was not intended to prohibit the Legislature from providing 'additional benefits' and requiring additional employee contributions or other consideration in exchange.' ... Emanuel said he hopes to seize on the 'opening' the Supreme Court created to forge an agreement with union leaders that can pass legal muster."

Moody's, Citing Pension Crisis, Downgrades Chicago's Debt to Junk Status

"Moody's Investor's Service on [May 12] dropped Chicago's bond rating two more notches -- to junk status ... The decision to drop the bond rating that determines city borrowing costs -- from Baa2 to Ba1 with a negative outlook -- comes just days after the state Supreme Court unanimously overturned state pension reforms and placed Emanuel's plan to save two of four city employee pension funds in similar jeopardy."

City of Chicago Retirees to See 40 Percent Health Insurance Hike

"Last year, [Chicago Mayor Rahm] Emanuel announced plans to save $108.7 million a year by phasing out the city's 55 percent subsidy for retiree health care and forcing retirees to make the switch to Obamacare. For the city, the Year One savings was $25 million. For retirees, that translated into an increase in monthly health insurance premiums in the 20 percent and 30 percent-range. On [September 12], city retirees and their dependents got hit again -- only this time, even harder. The city notified them of a 30-percent to 40-percent increase that will cost most of the retirees between another $300 to $400 a month."

Chicago Telephone Tax to Rise by 56 Percent to Shore Up Pensions

"A family of four with four cell phones and a land-line would end up paying $84 in additional taxes each year. That's $34-per-year more than the $50 price of Mayor Rahm Emanuel's original plan to raise property taxes by $250 million over a five-year period to shore up two of Chicago's four city employee pension funds."