Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker (D) yesterday called on state lawmakers to pass legislation this fall to consolidate nearly 650 police and firefighter retirement systems that are causing funding headaches for many local governments, Reuters reported. Pritzker said that the current system of governments maintaining their own pension funds “is failing,” noting that the formation of two new statewide funds would generate as much as $2.5 billion in additional investment returns over the next five years. “If adopted by the General Assembly, it would be a monumental achievement in the history of our state,” Pritzker told reporters. Ballooning pension liabilities for some cities have led to budget cuts and credit rating downgrades. The city of Alton, Ill., sold its regional wastewater system earlier this year to raise money for its pensions. The aggregate funded ratio for firefighter and police retirement systems outside of Chicago fell to 55.47 percent in 2017 from 57.58 percent in the prior year, according to a July report from the Illinois Legislature’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability. Unfunded liabilities rose by $1 billion to $11 billion.
