VICTORY!

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Chicago–In an historic victory for taxpayers, Ill. Gov. Pritzker’s income theft amendment, the proposed change in the Illinois Constitution to usher in a graduated income tax, was defeated. “Every taxpayer victory is important for Illinoisans, but of all our victories, this one was the biggest,” said Jim Tobin, president of Taxpayers United of America (TUA).

“Unlike what Pritzker thought, taxpayers are not stupid, and neither are they gullible. Illinoisans pay some of the highest taxes in the United States, and we’ve already seen several massive tax increases from Pritzker over the past few years. Taxpayers have had enough, and the repudiation of Pritzker’s money grab is evidence of that.” 

“If governor Pritzker, Speaker Madigan, and all of their cronies still want to hold office after this election, they must add a word to their dictionary: REFORM. Instead of lying to taxpayers with their endless empty promises, they need to roll up their sleeves for the first time in their lives and fix Illinois.” 

“How would they fix Illinois? Simple: reform the Illinois government pension system that has destroyed so many communities across Illinois. It can be done with a simple constitutional amendment to allow the state government-employee pension plans to be restructured for the benefit of everyone. I call it the Fair Pension Amendment.” 

“In addition to the rejection of the income theft amendment, taxpayers also rejected Home Rule in Crestwood. Home Rule is also a Trojan-horse tax increase like the income theft amendment. History has shown that Illinois taxpayers, when able to participate in direct democracy, will always reject higher taxes. The two referenda wins together make 439 taxpayer victories for TUA, and prove that petty tyrants like Pritzker can not increase state taxes if Illinois citizens make their wishes known at the polls.”

Reminder: vote NO by Tomorrow!

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Tomorrow is officially election day, and is the last chance to tell Illinois Governor “J.B.” Pritzker and House speaker Mike Madigan that enough is enough. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, November 3rd. If you see a long winded, craftily worded amendment on the Illinois ballot relating to income taxes designed to fool you, VOTE NO. A vote NO is a vote against even higher income taxes to subsidize lavish retired government employee pensions. Additionally, if you are a Crestwood resident and you see a ballot measure asking to vote on Home Rule, also vote NO. Home Rule is Home Ruin, designed to give local bureaucrats UNLIMITED taxing power over you without referendum. Vote NO to retain your right to vote on property tax increases!
Click here to view vote no Income Theft Amendment flier
Click here to view vote no Home Rule Crestwood flier
The fate of Illinois hangs in the balance on election day. Today is the day to save our state! 

Roselle’s Pension Scam

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Roselle- “It’s unconscionable that taxpayers are footing the bill for excessively generous salaries and pensions and finding those they hire put their children in the hands of unscrupulous administrators and predatory teachers and coaches,” stated Matthew Schultz, executive director of Taxpayers United of American (TUA).

“Taxpayers tragically trust the tax-raisers when they are told that paying more for salaries and benefits will result in higher quality ‘educators’ and administrators and better outcomes for their students. They certainly don’t expect so much scandal for their money.”

LPHS Coach Jared Wissmiller was convicted for his sexual relationship with a 15 year old student. Years later, LPHS volunteer coach Frank Battaglia was found to be a convicted sexual offender. Battaglia’s background was covered up by principal Dominic Manola, athletic director Pete Schauer and coach Chris Roll. This all came to light during an investigation into athletic recruiting violations.

“Manola, who was earning $122,004 plus $20,385 in benefits; Schauer, who was earning $152,149, and Roll who was earning $125,610 all returned to work after a brief suspension. These rich salaries translate to excessively rich pensions,” added Schultz.

“The Teachers Retirement System (TRS) is only about 50% funded. Guess who is on the hook for the other 50%? Taxpayers can’t afford to overpay teachers in employment and then another 30 years in pensions. But apparently Gov. J. B. Pritzker didn’t get that memo. He is working very hard, even putting in his own money, to get a graduated income-tax amendment passed.”

“Pritzker’s graduated income-tax will decimate middle-class Illinoisans. It’s never a good idea to raise taxes, but in the midst of the Covid-19 economic downturn it’s just plain crazy.”
“Here is a closer look at what Pritzker’s income-tax increase is really about: Government Pensions. Regardless of how they perform in their government jobs that come with nearly iron-clad job security, as you can see from the LPHS examples, these government teachers can retire early and collect obscene amounts of money from taxpayers.”

“David W. Smith retired from Lake Park CHSD 108 at only 58 years old. His current annual pension is $192,367. With his 3% compounded cost of living adjustment (COLA) he will collect about $4,446,485 over a normal lifetime.”

“Edward J. Wardzala was only 55 when he retired from Lake Park CHSD 108. With 30 years of compounded COLAs, Wardzala will collect at least $5,928,305 in taxpayer funded pension payments. His current annual pension is a very generous $179,996!     Click Here to view top Roselle government teacher pensions.

“It’s bad enough that government teachers are overpaid, regardless of performance, while they are teaching. It is tragic that we continue to pay them excessively throughout their retirement,” concluded Schultz.