May to push pension reforms

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Responding to dozens of calls and e-mails she has received, state Rep. Karen May, D-58th of Highland Park, reported Monday that she spent last week developing a pension-reform platform that she will introduce to her colleagues in the General Assembly.

May, who said her goal is to improve oversight, transparency and accountability with pensions, outlined the 10-point plan in her newsletter Aug. 6. Among them:

• Ask the Illinois Attorney General for an opinion if fraud was committed in Highland Park and other cases and, if so, if any fraudulent spiking can be retrieved from recipients;

• Appoint an independent Inspector General to investigation pension funds;

• Create an Internet accountability portal to have all compensation packages listed for local government executives;

• Do not permit cars, or unused vacation or sick days, to be rolled into final average salary calculations;

• No double dipping. Retirees should not be able to receive pension payments from and work as independent contractors to the same employer;

• All reform will need to be within the bounds of what is permitted and protected under Article 13 of the Illinois Constitution; and

• Require full funding of pensions.

May said she will draft the ideas into legislation to be submitted during upcoming sessions in Springfield.