Report: Illinois' Pension Debt Tops $300 Billion

Report: Illinois' Pension Debt Tops $300 Billion

By PETER HANCOCK / CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS • 5 HOURS AGO

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  A graphic from the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability's February 2021 economic forecast shows the rate of growth for the state's gross domestic product compared to that of the U.S.

  COMMISSION ON GOVERNMENT FORECASTING AND ACCOUNTABILITY

A new report by the credit rating agency Moody’s says Illinois will set a new record this year when it reports a total net pension liability of more than $300 billion, the highest of any state in the nation.

As of June 30, 2020, the report stated, the total unfunded liabilities of the state’s five pension systems stood at $317 billion, a 19 percent increase from the prior year. That was largely due to historically low interest rates, which have depressed pension fund earnings throughout the country.

With the state’s gross domestic product, or GDP, estimated to have fallen 2.5 percent in calendar year 2020, that pension liability amounts to roughly 37 percent of the state’s total economic output, up from a range of 28-32 percent over the previous four years.

When combined with other long-term liabilities, including retiree health care and bonded indebtedness, Moody’s estimates the state’s total liability ratio will amount to 48 percent of GDP for the fiscal year 2021 reporting cycle.

The report says that 80 percent of the increase is attributable to falling interest rates, but weaker-than-expected investment performance also played a role. The Illinois Teachers’ Retirement System, the largest of the five pension systems, reported investment returns of just 0.52 percent during the reporting period, far below its target of 7 percent.

“Illinois is an outlier among states both for fiscal challenges from pension expenses and for its limited capacity to modify the benefit packages that drive these expenses,” the report states. “The state allocates about 30 percent of its budget to retirement benefits and debt service, a ‘fixed-cost’ ratio more than three times the median for states, and its constitution gives public workers some of the most ironclad retirement benefit protections available.”

The report goes on to say that the amount that the state contributes to its pension funds is actually far less than what is needed to prevent continuing growth in their unfunded liabilities. Under current law, the contribution amounts are set each year at a rate aimed at achieving a 90 percent funded ratio by 2045.

The report also notes that Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 lacks any broad plan to address the state’s pension debt. But it also gave him credit for not suggesting the state scale back on pension payments over the short term to alleviate fiscal pressure brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a separate report to the state’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, or COGFA, the consulting firm Moody’s Analytics, a subsidiary of Moody’s Corp., said the state’s fiscal condition could hamper its ability to recover smoothly from the recession.

“Weak public finances mean Illinois will have to make extraordinary fiscal adjustments that leave it playing catch-up in the next business cycle,” the report stated. “Population loss and troubled state finances will limit Illinois’ long-term potential.”

The report says the state’s economy is expected to start recovering in earnest around mid-year and the unemployment rate should be under 6 percent by the end of the year, which would be in line with the national average but higher than other Midwest states.

How quickly the economy recovers will largely depend on how quickly the COVID-19 vaccines are delivered and how quickly the U.S. population as a whole achieves “herd immunity,” which is currently projected to happen by the fall.

“The economy should quickly kick into an extended period of strong growth as people shed their fear of getting sick and get back to doing what they did before the pandemic,” the report stated.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government and distributed to more than 400 newspapers statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.

Above is from:  https://www.wglt.org/post/report-illinois-pension-debt-tops-300-billion#stream/0

March 4: 1740 New COVID 19 Cases in Illinois

Changed location for Second COVID shot

Forward Boone COVID19 Information <vaccine@boonehealth.com>

To:''

Wed, Mar 3 at 6:06 PM

Currently, we are in the process of vaccinating Priority Groups 1A and 1B Part 1, which includes health care workers, long-term care residents, certain sectors of the essential workforce, and Boone County residents ages 65 and older. Phase 1B Part 2 will include those with underlying health conditions ages 18-64.  The underlying health conditions that qualify for this phase of vaccination include:

• Cancer
• Chronic Kidney Disease
• COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)
• Diabetes
• Heart Condition
• Immunocompromised State from a Solid Organ Transplant
• Obesity
• Pregnancy
• Pulmonary Disease
• Sickle Cell Disease

*This list is subject to change as guidance evolves and does not reflect an order of priority

At this time our vaccine supply is limited and we are currently only scheduling appointments for Phase 1A and Phase 1B Part 1. As our vaccine supply from the State increases, we will be able to vaccinate more people and expand into 1B Part 2.  Boone County Health Department plans to open up registration for 1B Part 2 and begin vaccinations for this group in the month of March.

SPECIAL NOTIFICATION: If you attended the clinic at the 65 and older Keenage Center Clinics on February 20^th and 21^st and are scheduled for your second dose on March 13^th and 15^th, we are using a different location for these clinics. They will be held at Belvidere High School (1500 East Ave Belvidere, IL 61008).  Meijer is in the process of contacting these individuals directly with more details.  This only impacts people who attended those specific clinics on February 20^th and February 21^st.

DELAYED SECOND DOSE CLARIFICATION: Second doses are allocated to the same provider who gave the first dose.  It is important that if you have already received your first dose that you return for your second from that same provider who gave you your initial vaccine.  If there has been a delay in your second dose appointment, and we appreciate your patience.  Your first dose provider will be in touch to schedule your second dose.  There are minimal intervals for second doses, depending on the vaccine manufacturer, but not a maximum interval so a postponed appointment will not affect the vaccine’s effectiveness.

Residents who qualify for Phase 1B Part 2 with the above underlying health conditions are encouraged to sign up for COVID-19 immunization information updates and our priority group waiting list by filling out the form located at: https://boonecounty.regroup.com/signup. The contact information you provide will be used to provide links to COVID-19 Vaccine Appointment Registration Sites when they become available for each Priority Group.

We are also providing you with additional nearby vaccine options for Boone County residents (see Attachments 1 & 2). If you have an underlying medical condition as specified in the state Vaccination Rollout Plan you may be able to get an appointment sooner at one of these locations.  We encourage you to contact one of these partner locations to sign up and get a vaccination sooner if you prefer.

March 3: 2104 New COVID 19 Cases in Illinois

Proper Mask Wearing

March 2: Covid-- Act Now-- Daily Download

Covid Act Now Daily Download

21:00 ET 02 March 2021

U.S. COVID Map & Risk Levels

Risk Levels*

U.S. Vitals

Cases: 28,453,529
+54,248 /24h

Deaths: 506,373
+1,885 /24h

Tests: 357,068,278
+1,349,529 /24h

Data derived from The Covid Tracking Project

The Day’s Top COVID Stories

• STAT News covers the Biden administration's new announcement that the U.S. will have enough vaccines for all adults by the end of May. Previously, the administration pledged to have enough vaccines to inoculate roughly 300 million adults by the end of July. The increase in expected supply is driven by a new agreement between the administration and Merck, a pharmaceutical company that halted research on its own COVID vaccine earlier this year. To help speed up rollout, Merck will help manufacture the recently approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine. While the accelerating timeline is exciting, it does not necessarily mean that all adults will be vaccinated by the end of May. The U.S. still must overcome distribution challenges, like the need for vaccinators, before the shots can all go into arms.

• The New York Times explores how the P.1 variant (first identified in Brazil) is driving reinfections. A record-breaking recent case surge in Manaus, a Brazilian city that some experts believe had reached herd immunity last spring, led researchers to investigate whether the new variant could evade previous immunity. In Manaus, researchers found that up to 61 percent of people who previously had COVID could be reinfected with P.1. The variant shares some mutations with B.1.1.7 (first identified in U.K.) and B.1.351 (first identified in South Africa) that allow it to spread more easily, as well as additional mutations that help it escape antibodies. Researchers also found that CoronaVac, a Chinese vaccine currently being distributed in Brazil, is less effective against P.1. than other variants.

• USA Today dives into a new nationwide initiative to study COVID long-haulers. Dr. Fauci announced the initiative last week, along with a new name for long COVID, Post Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC). The initiative seeks to answer questions about why some patients, known as long-haulers, continue to experience persistent symptoms months after recovering from COVID infections. While symptoms vary, the most commonly reported is “brain fog,” which includes memory problems, difficulty focusing, and intense fatigue. The launch of the initiative follows a recent study finding that 30 percent of all COVID patients still reported residual symptoms up to nine months after their illness.

New COVID Literature & Studies

• A study mathematically analyzes the effectiveness of various interventions aimed at limiting COVID transmission in retail stores. These interventions include reductions in customer density and restricting movement of customers in stores to one-way flow. The researchers assess two mechanisms of transmission: 1) close contact and 2) wake exposure, which refers to spread of viruses from one person by airflow to someone behind. Restricting customer movement to one-way flow is only effective if COVID spreads by close contact, while reducing customer density is very effective with either mechanism. Read the study.

• A pre-peer reviewed study offers preliminary results showing that one dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine can reduce the risk of COVID by 75%, 12 days after vaccination. One dose of the vaccine was also able to reduce even asymptomatic infection by the same amount. The full data of this study has not been released yet. Read the study.

March 2: 1577 New COVID 19 Cases in Illinois