AFL-CIO ON PENSION RUMORS : Details leaking out of the conference committee indicate that their draft plan is essentially the same as the unfair, unconstitutional bill – Senate Bill 1 – repeatedly and strongly voted down. At the center is a cost-of-living adjustment that fails to keep pace with the inflation rate, which means every year, senior citizens’ pensions will lose value and erode to rising living expenses. Through difficult negotiations, the We Are One Illinois union coalition acted to preserve pensions and developed a fair, constitutional pension funding solution with Senate President John Cullerton. The result, Senate Bill 2404, is a true compromise with widespread support, passing with a bipartisan supermajority in the Illinois Senate. The SB 2404 plan produces substantial savings to the state. It reduces the state’s retirement liabilities by $32 billion immediately and saves $134 billion over 30 years, achieved in a much fairer, legal way. The bill also safeguards against politicians diverting future pension payments by codifying an ironclad funding guarantee. If the legislature wants additional fiscal relief, it should look to close wasteful corporate tax loopholes before making deeper pension cuts that will devastate seniors. Teachers, firefighters, caregivers, and others have dedicated their lives to the public good and do not deserve to be left out in the cold. The House and the Governor should take steps to enact the SB 2404 plan, unchanged, this fall. Sincerely, Michael T. Carrigan President, Illinois AFL-CIO, on behalf of the We Are One Illinois union coalition
Posted on: Fri, 27 Sep 2013 20:33:15 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015