This Illinois Town’s Story Shows the Fate Others Will Face in Pension Crisis
26th April 2018
Generous pensions have always been a prime perk of government jobs. Now those pensions are causing government layoffs, reduced services, and tax increases.
Take Harvey, Illinois. The city has laid off half of its fire department and 13 police officers so it can meet its obligations to its retired police officers and firefighters—the result of decades of overpromising benefits and underfunding pension plans.
The laid-off first responders are just the first casualties of Harvey’s pension crisis. Residents and other government employees will feel the pain as Harvey cuts services, reduces salaries, or increases the workloads of its remaining employees. Harvey’s residents already face a property tax increase. Last year, a court ordered the city to impose a property tax levy specifically for its firefighters pension fund.
More info from Wikipedia:
The town is 75% black and 19% Latino, i.e. it’s run (and has been run) by Democrats.
In the 2000s and 2010s, Mayor Eric Kellogg attempted to boost Harvey’s economy with little success. Kellogg offered developers millions of dollars in incentives to revive the long vacant Dixie Square Mall. In another plan to redevelop the Chicago Park Hotel, a developer was given $10 million from the city but then abandoned the project, leaving behind a gutted building.