SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — With Illinois facing strangling debt from the money it owes toretirement funds, a top Democrat is seeking to amend the state Constitution to make it more difficult for legislators to boost public-employee pensions in the future.
The amendment House Speaker Michael Madigan proposed this week would require three-fifths votes in the House and Senate to enhance retirement benefits for public employees and similar tallies by city councils or school boards to sweeten perks for certain employees. If lawmakers and Gov. Pat Quinn approve, voters would decide in November whether to make it part of the Constitution.
Illinois owes about $80 billion to its five public-employee pension systems because of decades of underfunding. Madigan has pushed several recent measures to ease the financial burden, such as reducing benefits for new employees.
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