Yesterday, the Chicago Sun-Times ran an article estimating that the increase in the Consumer Price Index may be a mere 1.5% this year.
Estimates are that inflation for the time period used for Social Security will be 1.5%.
That’s good for consumers, but the paper notes that it will mean that Social Security recipients will only see a 1.5% raise in their checks.
There rate of inflation, as measured by the CPA, also controls how much schools and other tax districts can extract from property owners.
This past year the inflationary increase allowed was 1.7% under the Property Tax Cap.
Good thing Jack Franks is trying to keep the levy flat for seniors.
Who’s Jack Franks and what has he REALLY done for me lately?
Taxpayers will be happy to know that Teachers Retirement System of Illinois (TRS) provides a 3% compounded Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) increase for elementary, middle school, and high school teacher and administrator pensions every single year.
The Illinois State Employees Retirement System (SERS) pension recipients, whom are retired state workers, also receive an annual 3% compounded increase to their pensions.
The Illinois State University Retirement System (SURS) pension recipients, whom are retired university workers, also receive an annual 3% compounded increase to their pensions.
The Illinois General Assembly Retirement System (GARS) pension recipients, whom are retired legislators, also receive an annual 3% compounded increase to their pensions.
The Illinois Judicial Retirement System, ditto.
Some or all of these pension funds also receive 3% compounded COLA pension increases every single year.
State Employee Retirement System
State University Retirement System
Illinois Teachers Retirement System
Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund
Suburban & Downstate Police
Suburban & Downstate Fire
Municipal Employees of Chicago
Employees and Officers of Cook County
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District
Forest Preserve of Cook County
Chicago Laborers Retirement Fund
Chicago Fire Retirement Fund
Chicago Police Retirement Fund
Chicago Park Employees Retirement Fund
Chicago Teachers Retirement Fund
Chicago Transit Authority Retirement Fund
The rules for many of the funds above and maybe below changed for anyone whose effective hire date was January 1, 2011.
Note I said effective hire date.
If you substitute taught 1 day prior to January 1, 2011 you were grandfathered in the older more lucrative pension system.
Yet another loophole.
We don’t have a public sector pension problem.
We have a public sector pension nightmare.
Many or most local suburban municipalities and fire protection districts are getting hammered by high pension costs for police and fire.
Calculating social security and 401k contribution to payout ratio and comparing it to the above pensions results in a huge disparity.
Private sector pays more receives less.
Public sector pays less receives more.
Actually Mark, the taxpayers will be happy to know the truth, and you seem to be one of those people who wants something for nothing.
When the going is good, teachers don’t cash in like those in the private sector.
However, when the economy is doing poorly, some people just can’t resist wanting to take away from teachers’ income.
Btw, the arithmetic average for annual increase to COLA for the last 30 years has been 2.9.
This is right in line with the 3.0 that retired teachers receive through TRS. (http://www.ssa.gov/cola/automatic-cola.htm)
Why the complaints towards teachers?
Oh yeah, kick ’em while the economy’s down.