North Cook News

State Rep. Tom Morrison (R-Palatine) urges that pension fund reform is needed to support the increasing number of retirees in Illinois.

Commenting on the Wirepoints report that reveals most of the state's cities are failing in keeping their pension funds solvent, Morrison called for immediate pension fund reform but warns against increasing property taxes.

"Increasing property taxes, increasing fees, cuts, and services are just not acceptable," Morrison said. "Property taxes remain the biggest issue in my district…many properties, both residential and commercial where the value of that property has just remained flat for 10, 15, in some cases 20 years."

Morrison pointed out how the pension crisis is affecting communities.

“We’ve all heard about the five statewide pension systems that are in crisis, but this research looks at the pension crisis happening in our home communities,” Morrison said in a statement. “Our cities are struggling, property taxes and fees are rising, and the added unfunded mandates placed on them is making matters worse — the research proves that.”

The report made by Wirepoints, a nonprofit organization studying the economy of Illinois, gave 102 out of the 175 cities surveyed in Illinois a failing grade of "F" in their local pension fund management. The conclusion of the report puts Illinois as having the nation's worst state-level pension crisis.

“We have ignored this problem for far too long,” said Morrison in his May 5 statement. “Today’s research should be a stark wakeup call; ignoring this massive, growing problem won’t make it go away, it will only make it more difficult to dig us out of this hole.”

Other key points in the Wirepoints report include the following: Taxpayers are carrying the burden of the increase in pension fund shortfalls, taxpayers poured almost $1 billion in 2019 into pensions compared to $250 million in 2003, and a worrying number of municipal pensions are inching toward insolvency in the span of just 16 years.