Taxpayers United Files Petition With Ill. Supreme Court in Oak Park Dist. 97 Case

By on June 13, 2012   /   Latest, Lawsuits, Oak Park-Wilmette  

View release as a PDF
On June 5, 2012, plaintiffs Taxpayers United of America (TUA) and Noel Kuriakos filed a “Petition for Leave to Appeal” with the Illinois Supreme Court regarding its lawsuit against Oak Park Dist. 97, which places the petition in the Court’s hamper of cases, whereby the Court will decide whether or not to hear the plaintiffs’ petition.
If the Court decides to accept the Petition for Leave to Appeal, it will then decide whether or not to hear plaintiffs’ appeal regarding the lawsuit.
The question presented to the Supreme Court is whether the state legislature intended to allow school districts to understate the amount of proposed real estate tax increases by three times when they put referenda on the ballot seeking voter approval of those increases.
In the Oak Park case, District 97 claimed in its property tax increase referendum that their proposed real estate tax increase would be just $37.40 on a home with a fair market value at the time of the April 5, 2011 election of $100,000. The true increase was in fact $126.04.
The difference between those two figures was due to the state equalization factor, which was 3.3701 for the tax period in question. Oak Park District 97 claimed it did not have to use the state equalization factor, which was how it was able to understate the real estate tax increase by over three times the actual amount.
Now it is up to the Illinois Supreme Court to decide whether it will accept this case for its decision on the matter.

Back to Top

Wausau Hides Government Pension Payments

By on May 31, 2012   /   Latest, Pension Reform, Wisconsin  

View release as a PDF
WAUSAU—Taxpayers United of America (TUA) released estimated pension payouts for Wausau and Marshfield area government employees. Wisconsin refuses to release government pensions, ignoring citizens’ right to review all payments funded by taxes.
TUA, who last year released pension estimates for state employees and eight Wisconsin cities, calculated estimated pensions for government employees in the cities of Wausau and Marshfield, and Marathon and Wood Counties, based on current salaries.
“Wisconsin has made the most politically courageous changes in the nation, to the corrupt system that allows money to be forced from the rank and file and given to politicians in the form of campaign contributions, by limiting collective bargaining,” stated Rae Ann McNeilly, Director of Outreach for TUA.
“But it seems that some government officials are willing to protect the system by keeping it hidden from review. The costs of shielding the system from review, and ultimately, reform, are devastatingly high as cities around the country are buckling under the weight of their unfunded liabilities. Pension funds are the number one budgetary problem in the country.”
“While residents across Wisconsin and the country face crushing taxes, falling home values, and high unemployment, and, at least according to some, another recession, government employees continue to receive lavish pensions funded by taxpayers who will never collect more than about $22,000 from Social Security.”
McNeilly continued, “For example, Steven C. Andrews, Wood County Psychiatrist, will collect an estimated annual pension of $137,886* based on his actual salary of $215,446. His estimated lifetime pension payout is $3,722,914*.”
“Bradley Karger, Marathon County Administrator, has an estimated annual pension of $75,070*, based on his actual annual salary of $117,296, with an estimated lifetime payout of $2,026,882*. ”
“Wausau Police Chief, Jeffrey Hardel, has a lifetime estimated payout of $1,853,229* with an estimated annual pension of $68,638*, based on his actual annual salary of $107,247.”
View pension amounts below:

“Wisconsin’s government pension systems are crushing middle class Wisconsinites. Replacing defined benefit pensions for all new government hires with social security and 401(k)s would eventually eliminate unfunded government pensions. If current government employees would further increase their pension contributions, they would preserve their pension benefits. Additionally, all members should pay for 50% of their healthcare premiums. We need a stable system that is fair to both taxpayers and beneficiaries or pension checks will stop coming.” Added McNeilly.
*TUA submits FOIA requests for current employee salaries and estimates pensions based on the current pension laws. Assumes retirement at age 65 after 38 years work. Assumes current salary is salary used for pension calculation. Assumes COLA of 2%/yr. Lifetime Pension Payout does not include SS payments.

Back to Top

Top Oshkosh and Fond du Lac Gov't Pension Estimates Released

By on May 30, 2012   /   Latest, Pension Reform, Wisconsin  

View release as a PDF
OSHKOSH—Free and Equal (F&E) and Taxpayers United of America (TUA) released estimated pension payouts for Oshkosh and Fond du Lac area government employees. Wisconsin refuses to release government pensions, ignoring citizens’ right to review all payments funded by taxes.
TUA, who last year released pension estimates for state employees and eight Wisconsin cities, calculated estimated pensions for government employees in the cities of Oshkosh and Fond du Lac, and Fond du Lac County, based on current salaries. Winnebago County has refused to release the salaries of its employees, further denying the public’s right to review anything funded by the taxpayers.
“Wisconsin has made the most politically courageous changes in the nation, to the corrupt system that allows money to be forced from the rank and file and given to politicians in the form of campaign contributions, by limiting collective bargaining,” stated Christina Tobin, Vice President of TUA and Founder of F&E.
“But it seems that some government officials are willing to protect the system by keeping it hidden from review. The costs of shielding the system from review, and ultimately reform, are devastatingly high as cities around the country are buckling under the weight of their unfunded liabilities. Pension funds are the number one budgetary problem in the country.”
“While residents across Wisconsin and the country face crushing taxes, falling home values, and high unemployment, and, at least according to some, another recession, government employees continue to receive lavish pensions funded by taxpayers who will never collect more than about $22,000 from Social Security.”
Tobin continued, “For example, Mark Rohloff, Oshkosh City Manager, will collect an estimated annual pension of $87,497* based on his actual salary of $136,714. His estimated lifetime payout is $2,362,424*.”
“Philip D. Kelley, Fond du Lac County Medical Examiner, has an estimated annual pension of $156,993*, based on his actual annual salary of $245,302, with an estimated lifetime payout of $4,238,818*. ”
“University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Chancellor, Richard H. Wells, has a lifetime estimated payout of $3,756,689* with an estimated annual pension of $139,137*, based on his actual annual salary of $217,401.”
View pension amounts below:

“Wisconsin’s government pension systems are crushing middle class Wisconsinites. Replacing defined benefit pensions for all new government hires with social security and 401(k)s would eventually eliminate unfunded government pensions. If current government employees would further increase their pension contributions, they would preserve their pension benefits. Additionally, all members should pay for 50% of their healthcare premiums. We need a stable system that is fair to both taxpayers and beneficiaries or pension checks will stop coming.” Added Tobin.
*TUA submits FOIA requests for current employee salaries and estimates pensions based on the current pension laws. Assumes retirement at age 65 after 38 years work. Assumes current salary is salary used for pension calculation. Assumes COLA of 2%/yr. Lifetime Pension Payout does not include SS payments.

Back to Top