Why Gov Pritzker won’t amend the pension clause in the constitution

Illinois has close to $143 billion in unfunded pension liability. The unfunded liabilities rose $3.8 billion, or 2.8%, to a new peak of $141 billion in fiscal 2020 from $137.2 billion in 2019.

In his budget address, Gov. J.B. Pritzker defended his refusal to pursue meaningful pension reform by saying, “The fantasy of a constitutional amendment to cut retirees’ benefits is just that — a fantasy. The idea that all of this can be fixed with a single silver bullet ignores the protracted legal battle that will ultimately run headlong into the Contract Clause of the U.S. Constitution,” according to the Chicago Tribune.

In this news package, Dr. Kent Redfield, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Illinois Springfield, explains the pension clause in the constitution and reasons as to why the governor is hesitant to propose an amendment to the constitution.

And in a virtual town hall hosted by Good Government Illinois, Ralph Martire, the executive director of the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability explained that Illinois is suffering from a structural deficit problem that stems from its tax policy and not entirely from the underfunded pension system.