ILLINOIS LEGISLATORS PUT THE PEOPLE BEFORE POLITICS, PASS MEANINGFUL PENSION REFORM

On December 3, the Illinois General Assembly passed SB1, a landmark pension reform bill which Governor Quinn signed into law two days later. While there is still work to be done to address the state's fiscal woes, this legislation is a significant step toward putting Illinois back on sound financial footing.

The bill's most notable elements include:

• reducing annual cost-of-living adjustments
• phasing in increases in retirement ages
• putting in place a pensionable salary cap
• reducing employees' contributions by one percentage point, and
• instituting a new funding schedule

The pension crisis has been one of the most pressing issues facing llinois as public pensions have continued to eat up a bigger portion of the state's budget every year. The savings generated from SB1 will free funds that can instead be invested into education, health care and social services. Equally as important, the bill also helps secure the retirement of Illinois' public employees.

Illinois is Broke launched in 2009 with the goal of educating the public on Illinois' pension crisis and advocating for reform. There is still plenty of work to be done, but we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for helping to advocate for reform by contacting your legislators, engaging in the discussion, and most importantly, refusing to ignore the issue.