McHenry County Blog

An email arrived from the Better Government Association’s Andy Shaw.

It announces the unveiling of its data base of state and local governmental pensions.

“We’ve updated the BGA Payroll Database of 500,000 government workers with 2012 numbers and, for the first time, we’ve compiled the BGA Pension Database, which contains searchable information on 400,000 retirees from the largest public-sector pension funds in Illinois. ”

Type in a person’s last name and find the pension.

I tried it for myself and got lots of hits for “Skinner,” but none whose first name was “Cal.”

Then I went to the part that allows searches by pension type, found “Judges/Legislators” and typed in “Skinner.”

And there is was, as you can see below:

It does not have non-Chicago police and firefighters yet.

The pro-abortion Personal PAC launched its second mailing on behalf of Dee Baubien (Ind.-Madigan) in her race against Republican David McSweeney. It arrived on the last workday of the third week of October.

It features former George Ryan Lt. Gov. Corrine Wood (not implicated in any of Ryan’s misdeeds), along with candidate Beaubien. It has a lot of panels, which you can see below:

Here’s the back of the piece as it arrived in mailboxes:

Inside is a foldout,

The second in the feature pair in this mailing comes next.

Text appears on the next panel.

The piece has two more panels that are meant to be read together. You see them chopped up below here, so put them together in your mind.

And, the final part of the mailing has a large photo of Corrine Woods.

While Beaubien’s campaign was going after abortion, McSweeney’s was warning of the real estate tax hike that Mike Madigan wants to impose upon all parts of Illinois outside of Chicago.

On the back McSweeney links Beaubien to Madigan.

At the end of this money, Moody’s, the bond rating company, will start using lower estimated interest rates to calculate pension liabilities for state and local governments, according to the Washington Post.

Pension gaps are expected to triple

A more honest way of reporting is the goal, the Post reports.

The Post does a goo job explaining how lowering the estimated rate of return raises the pension debt here.

In Illinois the Teachers Retirement Fund would show an unfunded liability of 83 percent under the new reporting requirements.

TRS Spokesman is quoted in the Post as describing the change as “a public relations problem.”

At last night Illinois Policy Institute forum on teacher pensions, one question from Northwest Herald News Editor Kevin Lyons had to do with House Minority Leader Tom Cross’ having characterized a shift in tax burden from the state taxpayer to the local property taxpayer.

Laying out the problems Policy Institute Spokeswoman Diane Rickert.

She explained that there was a $203 billion problem when promised health insurance was included. That’s $41,000 per household,” she said.

She pointed out that disconnecting the setting of pension levels from the payment for pensions was “an anomaly,” that most units of local government set pensions [by setting salaries] and, then, had to come up with the money to pay them.

She pointed specifically to the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF), to which most government workers who are not teachers, fire or police officers belong. [Police and fire pensions are also financed by real estate taxes.]

Several times during the meeting, Rickert argued that McHenry County taxpayers would continue to be subsidizing North Shore school districts that pay their teachers much more than teachers get paid in McHenry County, if the State taxpayer were forced to continue paying for teacher pensions. The argument seemed to have almost a class envy tinge. She said the Policy Institute favors an immediate shift of incidence.

“Doing it all at once would take 3 1/2 percent of the whole budget,” she estimated. She also gave two examples of a ten-year phase in:

• Cary Grade School District 26 with a $34.5 million budget – $150,000 in year one
• Woodstock Unit District 200 with a $98 million budget – $274,000 in the first year

“I’m pretty such some school superintendents get paid more than that,” she added.

District 47 Board President Jeff Mason answered in a manner that led me to believe that he thought a transfer of financial responsibility was inevitable. He referred to the

• “The test you didn’t want to study for
• “The leak in the roof you didn’t take care of”

Earlier, Mason had said, “We understand this expense is going to be shifted to the school district at some point. “Thirty years sounds reasonable,” he said with a chuckle. Then, five to seven years would give us a chance to ease the shock value to go forward.”

The Crystal Lake School Board President complained that there were “too many cooks–State and local.”

It the financing goes back to local schools, Mason said he thought “that’s where the rules should be set.”

“We need a permanent solution, not a Band-Aid solution.

“Just taking the accountability away from the State will not solve the problem,” Illinois Education Association Spokesman Mike Sayre, a Crystal Lake High School District teacher, added.

The IEA representative made the

• “school boards would have to cut programs to kids,”
• “doing things to affect kids”

argument several times, much to the vocal distaste of the man sitting next to me in the front row.

There were two taxpayer questioners under the only two questions will be allowed policy, one from a teacher or retired teacher and one for everybody else at the forum.

Former School Superintendent Don Bond of Huntley grabbed the “teacher” spot.

He complained his tax bill had gone from $4,000 to $8,000 over the last twenty years.

He had a question, but his point was “Springfield made the mess. Don’t send it to the [property taxpayers]!”

“If you want to keep the problem in Springfield, expect that tax bill to climb and climb and climb,” Rickert replied after pointing out that the income tax had already been hiked 67%.

She pointed to the Huntley School Districts $82 million budget.

Over a ten-year period it would cost $735,000, she said. [I assume that is for the ten years, but my notes are unclear.]

The non-teacher question was asked by Cary Grade School Board member Chris Jenner.

He asked if the legislature would going to shift new costs to school districts, would they take away

• unfunded mandates,
• the prevailing wage requirement that makes building cost 20-30% than for non-government projects
• ineffective life safety code requirements

“The Illinois Education Association has no position,” Sayer answered.

“The onus should be on the politicians in Springfield to remove the onerous requirements,” the Illinois Policy Institute Spokeswoman said.

Mason argued that teachers should be provided with the opportunity to make decisions about their retirement.

The IEA’s Sayer entered the fray again explaining, “When I think of Cary District 26, I know a lot of teachers who have been forced to to teach music and physical education and that’s not what they trained for.

“All things we do for the Illinois Education Association is for the students first.”

The McHenry County College meeting was well-attended, as you can see from the photo below of the dispersing crowd.

With two State Representatives in attendance, people took the opportunity to bend their ears.

Also in attendance were two District 6 candidates for McHenry County Board,Democrat Jay Kadakia and Republican Mary McCann.

Then I went home to write my first article on this event, which is entitled,

“IEA Spokesman Too Young To Know His Union’s Role in the Pension Crisis.”

 You can read it here.

I went to the Illinois Policy Institute’s Pension.  Got there a little late and was pleasantly surprised to discover that it was over an hour after it started.

Representing the Illinois Education Association was Crystal Lake High School teacher Mike Sayre.

I waited in vain for him to accept the responsibility his union and the Illinois Federation of Teachers had in helping create the teacher pension mess.

As I thought about it, I conclude he was too young to know what IEA and IFT lobbyists had done over the years to shortchange the Teachers Retirement System.

Although I have written about this before, let me repeat the scenario that went on year after year after year after year.

The Governor’s budget would have “X” hundreds of millions of dollars for education.

Included would be recommendations for K-12, universities and pensions.

As the session went on teacher union lobbyists would ask for more money for State Aid to Education.  In other words, for current salaries.

Where would that money come from?

The pension portion of the education budget.

Concurrently, those same lobbyists would be trying to improve teacher pensions.  Think  early retirement.  (I was astounded that one of my high school classmates who went into teaching was able to retire at age 52.)

The effect?

Higher teacher salaries, which, in turn, led to higher teacher pensions…while the pension fund was being shorted.

So, when Mike Sayre blames the legislators for not paying what they should have over the years, he is partly right.

The part he doesn’t know about is that his union urged those legislators to do what he complained about Tuesday night.

He said the IEA wants a guarantee that the General Assembly will put money into the Teachers Retirement Fund.

It is virtually impossible for one General Assembly to bind a future General Assembly.

It would be like telling future IEA lobbyists not to try to improve benefits for current dues paying members, that is active teachers.

Just trying to parcel out the responsibility for the mess all parties got us taxpayers in.

= = = = =
On the IEA handout for the event was the following assertion: “The pension crisis was caused by politicians who diverted the pension system payments to other programs.”

What other programs?

State Aid to Education so current salaries could be raised with the assumption that pension payments would take care of themselves. After all the Illinois Constitution says pensions can’t be impaired.

Even I told teachers that for years when they expressed concerns.

A press release from the Illinois Policy Institute:

Illinois Policy Institute to host debate on teacher pension reform

Debate 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 14 at McHenry County College in northwest suburban Crystal Lake

CHICAGO (Aug. 13, 2012) – On Tuesday, Aug. 14, the Illinois Policy Institute will host a debate aimed at exploring who should pay the employers’ share of teacher pension costs: local school districts or the state.

Tuesday’s debate will be held in the auditorium at McHenry County College, 8900 Route 14, Crystal Lake. The debate starts at 7 p.m., and is free and open to the public.

The Crystal Lake debate will be moderated by state Rep. Tom Morrison and Kevin Lyons, news editor at the Northwest Herald newspaper in McHenry County. Panelists will include:

• Mike Sayre on behalf of the Illinois Education Association;
• District 47 school board president Jeff Mason; and
• the Illinois Policy Institute’s Diana Sroka Rickert, an award-winning journalist on the topic of pensions.

In June, the question of who should pay the “employer” portion of teachers’ pensions prompted legislative talks over pension reform to come to a standstill. The results of a new poll commissioned by the Illinois Policy Institute finds that public opinion on this issue is mixed, not only across the state but across the political spectrum.

The poll found that nearly half of likely Illinois voters oppose asking school districts to pay the employer share of teachers’ pension costs, while the other half of likely voters are split between indecision and favoring this proposal.

“The Institute’s poll indicates that the public needs more information on how local pension accountability would affect schools and taxpayers, and that they’re confused about who owns this policy in the statehouse,” said Kristina Rasmussen, executive vice president of the Illinois Policy Institute.

“To improve understanding of this issue, the Institute is launching this statewide tour to engage stakeholders and move toward consensus on much-needed pension relief.”

In addition to Monday’s stop in Crystal Lake, the Illinois Policy Institute is planning debate stops in Rockford, Skokie and Kane County. Debates already have been held in Quincy, Carbondale, Lemont Springfield and Decatur.

= = = = =

The Illinois Policy Institute sponsored a candidates’ night at MCC in October, 2010.  Democrats ducked the Congressional part.  The Institute call the appearance a “Turnaround Tour.”

A joint statement from District 300 and its teacher union:

Board and LEAD300 jointly request mediator in negotiations

The negotiating teams for the D300 School Board and the D300 teachers’ union, known as LEAD300, have requested a third‐party mediator to assist in their ongoing negotiations.

The School Board and LEAD300 filed the mediation request in keeping with a new state law that was passed last year, called Senate Bill 7.

This law requires that if the parties have not agreed on a new contract in a certain time period prior to the start of the upcoming school year, the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board (IELRB) will initiate mediation.

The involvement of a mediator does not mean that the Board and LEAD300 are at an impasse, but rather it reflects compliance with the new law as well as the desire to bring negotiations to a timely conclusion.

The mediator is a neutral, third party, who is appointed by the IELRB to assist the parties in coming to an agreement. There is no cost to the school district for using a mediator.

In spring 2011, the D300 School Board and LEAD300 agreed to a one‐year collective bargaining agreement for D300 teachers and other certified staff, which expired on July 1, 2012 (The terms of this contract will automatically roll forward until/unless both parties agree to a new contract.)

The School Board initiated an invitation to LEAD300 in January 2012 to begin negotiations for a new agreement. That month, the first negotiations session took place for what the School Board hopes will result in a multi‐year contract to give stability to students, teachers, and district taxpayers.

However, in the sessions that have taken place since then, LEAD300 has not presented to the School Board any specific proposal as to the salary schedule and benefits that LEAD300 would like for its members. The School Board has been unable to develop or present a counterproposal because no dollar amounts or percentages have been proposed by LEAD300.

LEAD300 presented, among other concepts, a proposal to substantially lower class sizes.

The School Board very much shares this desire to lower class sizes.

But without knowing specifically how much LEAD300 is seeking in terms of salaries and benefits, the School Board
cannot determine to what extent the district could afford to do so, if at all.

The bigger picture of these negotiations must also be considered by all parties.

D300 inevitably faces increased costs in the near future due to state pension reforms, which will push more pension costs onto school districts.

As early as next year, D300 will likely have to pay at least $1 million to $3 million more a year in increased pension contributions. Furthermore, the district will not see the financial benefits of the renegotiated Sears EDA for another three years.

Even then, at roughly $3.2 million a year, the increased EDA funding will only begin to partially offset the state funding cuts that D300 has recently suffered in transportation and other areas.

The School Board had hoped to be further along in the negotiations process by now, especially in light of the good faith measures it has taken.

Administration had decided this spring not to recommend any budget‐related layoffs of teachers or other certified staff for the upcoming 2012‐2013 school year, despite the additional financial pressure this would place on the district’s already tight budget. The Board supported this recommendation against layoffs as a good faith measure to pave the way for collaboration during negotiations.

The D300 School Board remains deeply committed to working with LEAD300 and optimistically aspires to find a resolution which allows the district to focus on students.

Student achievement and fiscal responsibility are the mutual job of every Board member, educator, and staff member in the district.

Together, all parties must be mutually committed to living within the district’s limited financial means in order to ensure that students have the resources that they need to thrive.

The Board and LEAD300 believe that using a mediator can positively support this goal and allow them to come to a timely agreement.

D300 student attendance begins on Monday, August 13, for the 2012‐2013 school year.

A group calling itself “Patriotic Veterans” just called to tell me that there is an attempt to place the unfunded liability of teacher pensions on real estate taxpayers’ backs.

It said the politicians should retire at 65.  (That would have been find with me, but I was forced into retirement when I lost the 2000 GOP primary election.)

More to the point the call ended with

“Press one to reach Mike Tryon.”

So, I did.

There were two rings, then nothing.

Guess the call didn’t fully accomplish its purpose.

A press release from State Senator Pam Althoff:

Althoff: Shifting pension risk onto local schools wrong approach

SPRINGFIELD, IL. – State Sen. Pamela Althoff (R-McHenry) says a pension proposal being advanced in Springfield that shifts costs onto suburban and Downstate school districts could result in higher property taxes without initiating true reforms.

Althoff says she will oppose the measure, Senate Bill 1673, should it come to the Senate for a vote in its current form. Under the legislation, Illinois state government would shift future pension liability risk onto local governments including school districts, universities and community colleges.

Such a move could put those entities at risk of market fluctuations and actuarial assumptions leading to declining investment returns, forcing them to impose higher property taxes to compensate for the shortfall.

“I am absolutely against any pension reform plan that shifts this financial risk without addressing the core root of the problem, which is the skyrocketing costs associated with the current system,” Althoff said.

“Even worse, if this plan took effect, suburban and Downstate school districts could be in enormous financial jeopardy should investments not come back as expected, which could lead to higher property taxes to pay for the losses.

“This bill is bad for taxpayers, bad for the economy and bad for state employees who deserve a solution that truly protects the long-term solvency of the pension system.”

The McHenry senator warned that constituents she’s talked to are demanding lawmakers enact true and real pension reform that reins in costs today, rather than pushing the problem onto others.

“This is exactly the type of fiscal sleight-of-hand that’s gotten Illinois pension system to the precarious point it’s at today,” Althoff warned.

“Local school districts aren’t the ones who’ve shortchanged the pension system to the point where it needs massive restructuring – that happened on the state level. It’s only right that Springfield step up and come up with a solution that doesn’t unduly punish local school districts and colleges.”

I have to say I am disappointed that Crystal Lake District 47 has no idea of how much it might cost to shift the financing of teacher pensions from state taxpayers to local taxpayers.

In a Freedom of Information Request, I asked for the ““estimated increase in local taxes in total and by home if teacher pensions have to be paid by property taxes, as being considered by the General Assembly.”

The reply:

“District 47 does not possess records containing the information you are requesting.”

Wouldn’t you think the administration and school board might be interested in that number, even if the plan is no longer under active consideration?