McSweeney Sick Day Transparency Bill Passes Senate

From State Rep. David McSweeney:

IL Senate Approves Rep. McSweeny’s Measure Requiring Public Disclosure of Unused Sick Days

Springfield, IL – The Illinois Senate has given bipartisan approval to a measure State Rep. David McSweeney (R-Barrington Hills) sponsored to
add sick days to the requirements of publicly disclosed payouts for certain Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) employees.

Under current Illinois law, some employees of local governments can use their accumulated sick leave to boost their pension payments based upon their total compensation in their final period of employment.

Pension payouts are based on the last few years of employment.

Some public employees can save their unused sick days and apply them as a
pension enhancement, which can result in a significant boost to the total benefit paid to retirees during their lifespan.

In a boost for government transparency, House Bill 303 adds unused
sick time to disclosable payments for non-union public IMRG employees.

HB 303 will require any accumulated sick time to be discussed in a
public meeting.

The amount of the benefit, retirement date, and the eventual liability for the government of the boost would need to be disclosed to the public.

“This is a common-sense reform that will help local governments have a
better understanding of their potential pension obligations and to plan accordingly,” McSweeney said.

“It had bipartisan support and I certainly appreciate the work Sen. Tom Cullerton did to get the bill through the Illinois Senate.”

HB 303 passed the Senate by a vote of 55-0. It had previously passed
the House by a vote of 115-0-0.

The measure now moves to the Governor’s desk for his signature.


Comments

McSweeney Sick Day Transparency Bill Passes Senate — 3 Comments

  1. So township highway commissioners cannot claim $48,000 in unpaid sick time anymore?

    Damn you Algonquin township!

  2. Accumulating unused sick days year over year is ridiculous. If you don’t use it in a calendar year, then you lost it.

    Increasing pension payouts per amount of accumulated unused sick days is ludicrous.

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