Posted on 06/09/2020 9:36:29 AM PDT by re_tail20
The dispute between Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as to whether the next stimulus bill will contain money for state and local governments should resonate in Illinois because, absent a very big dollop of federal dollars or a miraculous economic rebound, the state will soon need Senator McConnell to make good on his alternative plan to create a path to bankruptcy for the states.
At this point, Illinois has no hope of its underfunded state pension programs ever returning to solvency—even a quick economic recovery and a robust bull market won’t make a dent in its structural deficit, and its aging—and fleeing—population means that pension costs are going to continue to grow and outpace revenues without some sort of structural change that cannot be accomplished without federal help.
The passage of the amendment in November that would allow the state to impose progressive taxation may buy it some time—expect it to follow California's lead and increase tax rates for all of 2020 shortly after the election—but even that windfall won't be enough to fix things.
But the promise that top tax rates will only go to 7 percent and only for those who earn over $250,000 a year is simply untenable: income taxes will have to go up a lot and for everyone, sooner rather than later.
Ultimately, it may not be the state's decision alone regarding future tax increases: At some point the municipal bond investors will come to realize that there’s little hope that the state can make good on its contractual obligations to repay them, and the market for Illinois bonds will freeze up. If the state cannot access capital markets and the federal government won't give or lend them money, they will be stuck. At that point, negotiations between the state...
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
Sad! I always thought it would be NY or Ca. Oh well!
Northwestern Indiana is an available alternative for many Illinoisans who wok in downtown Chicago. There’s even a commuter railroad for them to use, the Chicago South Shore & South Bend RR, or its present successor that runs to South Bend Indiana. Should be interesting to see what happens to all the south suburbs of Chicago, since many of their residents could move to the South Bend area.
First ask you favorite liberals if there is anything you can have that they can't tax. They'll doubtless say no, we can tax anything we dang well please.
Fine, tax the REAL rich. Have them tax government pensions. Illinois constitution says they can't reduce government pensions, it doesn't say they can't tax them! The rates can be as progressive or flat as they like, but the net should be calculated to make their budgets balance. And withhold the taxes from their pension checks so they can't cheat.
Do not tax private pensions as private folks haven't spent decades being given current pay raises in lieu of pension contributions through political sweetheart deals. If some of the fat cats have to sell off second boats or third houses so there's money left to pay for basic services to the peons, so be it. They've been ripping us off long enough. If they do this soon we might let them keep their heads.
I can’t believe Illinois is going to beat us in California to Bankruptcy, I fully expect Governor Wonder Boy here in CA. to Double Down and try to get to the Finish line first.
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