The government-pension crisis is the number one budgetary problem in the U.S., stated the Vice President of Taxpayers United of America (TUA).
“The government-employee pension plans of a number of cities are headed toward default, and these sinking pension plans are the underlying reason why some cities already have declared bankruptcy and why more cities may be staring bankruptcy in the face,” according to Christina Tobin, TUA Vice President and Founder of Free and Equal Elections Foundation.
“For the last year, I have been traveling to different states county-by-county, releasing local government pension amounts. I have seen firsthand the dire financial situation that is occurring in cities and counties across the country.”
“Reuters noted that so far in 2012, there have been 21 municipal defaults totaling $978 million, versus 28 defaults totaling $522 million for the same period in 2011,” said Tobin.
“A number of US cities have filed for bankruptcy, the most prominent of which is the city of Vallejo, once the capital of California. Municipalities that have either filed for bankruptcy or are just emerging from it include Central Falls, Rhode Island, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Boise County, Idaho, and Jefferson County, Alabama.”
“According to the San Francisco Examiner, leaders of Pritchard, Alabama, a city on the outskirts of Mobile, had known since 2004 that the pension fund was scheduled to run dry in 2009. Officials tried to declare bankruptcy, but state law forbids a town from ducking its pension obligations. The city just stopped paying its pensions. Pritchard’s 150 retired city employees were reduced to showing up at City Council meetings begging for money to make it through the Christmas season.”
“As of December 2010, America’s public pensions were underfunded by an estimated $3.6 trillion. The pension problem might be worse than figures suggest, because many cities and states are either ignoring the problem or actively trying to conceal it.”
“It’s now judgment day for the lavish, gold-plated city and municipal government pensions,” said Tobin. “Many retired government employees receive pensions that are higher than salaries in the private sector. Government pension plans are hemorrhaging dollars.”
“According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Pritchard stands as a warning to cities like Philadelphia and states like Illinois, whose pension funds are under great strain.”
“The way to fix the broken pension system is to replace pensions for all new government hires with social security and 401(k)s, and increase current employee contributions,” said Tobin. “The current crop of Republicans and Democrats won’t do it—they’re controlled by corporate and union interests. We need a national movement of Americans from across the political spectrum who will unite and throw them out of office. Then, we will get meaningful pension reform.”
OAK PARK—On Thursday, May 3, Taxpayers United of America (TUA) will canvass the streets of Oak Park with flyers in order to raise awareness about the deceptive referenda ballot language used by the Oak Park Government School District 97 in 2011. The district’s tactics resulted in a successful property tax increase.
TUA later filed suit on behalf of Oak Park Taxpayers, to end such deceptions.
“When we challenged the deceptive activities of the School District, we knew it wouldn’t be easy,” said Christina Tobin, vice president of TUA, and Founder of Free and Equal Elections Foundation, “But the actions of the school board were so blatant, we had no choice.”
A shocking ruling by Judge Mary Mikva, on the lawsuit, basically said it was “ok” for the district to grossly understate the amount by which property taxes would increase.
But the suit also claims that the district knew in advance that the ballot grossly understated the property tax increase.
“The board didn’t just understate the tax increase. It led voters to believe that the property tax increase would be only $37.40 per $100,000 of their property value when in reality, it would be $126.04 per $100,000! That is nearly three times more than they told taxpayers it would be,” said Tobin.
The district admitted that it did not use the state equalization factor. If it had, the factor would have accurately calculated the proposed increase’s taxpayer impact.
TUA has appealed the Mikva ruling, because if the ruling stands, taxpayers could be legally misled in future, in school districts across the State, as to estimated property tax increases. The appeal has been filed in the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals.
“We will take this case to the Illinois Supreme Court if necessary”, stated Tobin. “In the meantime, we are dedicated to educating the citizens of Oak Park about the issue. So expect to see a flyer in your neighborhood!”
NOTE: 80% of District 97 spending goes to salaries and benefits. All of the recent 67% state income tax increase is being used to fund the lavish pensions of retired government teachers and other employees. To view the top 100 pensions and salaries of Oak Park Government School District 97, click here.
Jim Tobin, President of Taxpayers United for America, is quoted in the following story from the Chicago Tribune.
This month, for the first time in their lives, some 10- and 11-year-old Cub Scouts from Chicago built a fire, pitched tents and slept under the stars.
The kids discovered the great outdoors in a small patch of Cook County Forest Preserve across the street from a housing development in Tinley Park. It’s not wilderness, troop leader Ariadna Sanchez conceded, but for one night, she said, it was another world.
“It gives them the feel for the outdoors while living in the city,” she said. “You can be in nature but still be safe. If you need to get a pizza, you can still go to the mall.”
Long derided as neglected natural resources, the forest preserves of suburban Cook County may not be an obvious destination for those looking to escape the urban hustle and bustle. County officials hope to change that perception — and are banking on a proposed investment of up to $22 million in upgrades to lure campers.
The proposal is part of County Board President — and former Girl Scout — Toni Preckwinkle’s goal to improve neglected district facilities and provide more recreation in hopes of attracting more people to the preserves.
Currently, only youth groups are allowed to camp overnight, and they accounted for 5,000 stays last year. The idea is to open the preserves to adult and family camping, which are currently prohibited. As officials draw up a camping master plan, the changes could also provide greater access for people with disabilities, and possibly for corporate retreats, day camps, RVs and campers.
This spring, officials sought feedback on the plan from groups like Boy Scouts of America, YMCA and Sierra Club. A public input period on the master plan runs through Monday at preserve nature centers and at http://fpdcc.com/camping/. Public meetings will be held on the proposal this summer, and if the plan is finalized by August, officials hope to have new facilities ready for use starting by late next year.
The proposed changes come at a time when the number of people camping nationally has been holding fairly steady. The Outdoor Foundation, an industry group, reported that while the number of people camping decreased 10 percent in 2011, camping had increased during the recession as a cheap getaway. Participation is spread evenly across income levels and ages, the group says.
Elsewhere in the Chicago area, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties all offer forest preserve camping, which attracts thousands of campers each year, generally starting May 1. Illinois state parks offer sites year-round, and now is the time to make summer reservations, because the half-dozen most popular sites, like Chain O’ Lakes and Starved Rock state parks, generally fill up.
Cook County also offered public camping in the past. At one time it had nine camps, most of which were acquired from other organizations. But over the years, the district didn’t maintain the sites, some of which dated from the 1930s, said Gordie Kaplan, executive director of the American Camp Association, Illinois. The sites deteriorated, and many were eventually closed.
The county now has three campsites, plus three others operated by youth organizations. But the remaining sites are run down and in less-than-idyllic locations — near main roads or under an airplane flight path, said forest preserve Commissioner Timothy Schneider.
He supports creating new campsites to get people out to enjoy the forest preserves, which cover more than a 10th of all land in Cook County, according to the district.
“There’s never been an emphasis on camping as long as I’ve been commissioner,” Schneider said. “We need to provide more passive recreation in our forest preserves so people can realize what a beautiful environment we have.”
For dramatic landscapes, officials admit, forest preserves can’t compete with some out-of-state sites that lure Chicago-area residents, like Devil’s Lake State Park in Wisconsin. But for convenience and affordability, district Executive Director Arnold Randall said, the preserves offer an easy way to introduce beginners to the great outdoors.
The preserves also encompass a mix of woods, marshes, rivers, ponds, hills, rare orchids and a variety of wildlife, including a recently discovered nest of bald eagles.
A big goal is to make outdated facilities more appealing. Instead of fly-ridden outhouses and pump wells, Randall said, officials hope to offer amenities like hot showers and better access for people with disabilities. A new conference room might provide room for corporate retreats. To complement the campgrounds, the district might have activities like naturalist-led hikes, team building or ropes courses, and mount a marketing campaign to attract visitors.
“We want to do it really well,” Randall said. “We want to have a lot of different experiences for people and be known regionally as a destination.”
One potential model for such a facility, suggested by supporters, is Lakewood Forest Preserve, Lake County’s largest, which offers camping, fishing, a dog area, miles of trails and a local history museum in Wauconda.
Because alcohol is allowed in the Cook County preserves, the district likely would have to beef up security by its own police or other alternatives such as park rangers to combat late-night partying.
While the measure appears to have support among Cook County Board members, who double as forest preserve commissioners, not everyone loves the idea. Jim Tobin, president of the Taxpayers United of America, said the notion of spending $22 million on campsites is a “travesty,” noting that as a boy in Chicago, he and his friends used to ride bikes and camp by day in forest preserves without a formal campsite.
During hard economic times, following a major state income tax increase, Tobin said, governments should be cutting spending, not increasing it.
Officials plan to borrow the money by starting to issue bonds this June, and plan to repay it from existing revenue in a balanced budget without raising taxes, Randall said. As proposed, $100 million to $110 million in new borrowed money would go to a variety of projects for the next five years.
In addition to the money earmarked for new and upgraded campgrounds, the spending could include $25 million for buying land, about $10 million for improvements to the Brookfield Zoo and $7 million for Chicago Botanic Garden upgrades. User fees — currently $10 per night per tent, though an increase is possible — would also help pay for camping operating expenses.
Bob Buehler, Cub Scout master of Pack 381 in Buffalo Grove, welcomed the plan as a way to offer an underrated and satisfying reconnection with nature. Buehler grew up on Chicago’s South Side and spent a lot of time in the preserves as a Boy Scout.
“It’s always nice to get out in nature and see there’s things bigger than us and our day-to-day lives,” he said. “You lose touch with that in the city. Even in those little patches of forest across the street from a Hackney’s restaurant, it feels like you’re out in the woods.”
To help draw up the camping plan the Forest Preserve District last fall hired Dallas landscape architecture firm Studio Outside for $300,000.
