Quinn to Renew Pension Shift Push in Special Session

The Illinois General Assembly will meet Aug. 17 to discuss the state's massive unfunded pension liability, as well as a controversial plan to shift the cost of teacher pensions to local school districts.

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn called last week for a special session of the General Assembly to tackle pension reform. The Illinois House was already going to be back in Springfield during the session's scheduled time—Aug. 17— to decide the fate of indicted Rep. Derrick Smith (D-Chicago), the Chicago Tribune reports. But the governor's pension call means the Senate must also convene. Quinn made the announcement during a speech July 30 at the City Club of Chicago, calling on lawmakers to deal with "comprehensive" reforms that address the state's $83 billion unfunded pension liability. The state legislature failed to reach an agreement on pension reform during its regular spring session in May, despite last-minute efforts to strike a deal. Quinn …

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Larry Rizzo

7:25 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Ed I paid into the pension system every pay day.My contribution was 8&1/2% of my total amount deducted unlike other pensions that were only 4% or nothing at all.The retiree that put in his or her fair share especially should not be penalized for their stupidity,if they (THE GENERAL-ASSEMBLY),were running a company and stealing the profits they would all be in jail!!!!   more ›

VIDEOS: Kirk Dillard Talks Durbin, Death Penalty, Tax Hike and GOP Future in Tinley Park

The state senator and former gubernatorial candidate spoke before the Bremen Township Republican Organization on Saturday.

State Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale), the man who lost the 2010 GOP nomination for governor by fewer than 200 votes, spoke before an excited crowd at the Oak Park Avenue Metra station in Tinley Park for the Bremen Township Republican Organization's Lincoln/Reagan Breakfast Event. Watch the videos above for Dillard's takes on – respectively – his opposition to the recent abolishment of the death penalty, a recent decision that Firearm Owner Identification cards are public records, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and the state's recent income tax hike.

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PatchCast: A Daily Video Report

Daily PatchCast: Schools, Development Deals and Basketball

A daily video recap of the Southland's top stories

District 135 Taking Residency Fraud to Civil Court UPDATE: Developer Plans Outlet Mall, Hotels for New Lenox Kosel, School Officials Skeptical of Governor's District Consolidation Plans Glen Giannetti Talks French Fries and Salary Size Boys Basketball: H-F Has No Trouble Getting Past Marian Catholic

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Southland Stories

Will 2 of the Southland's Most Notorious Killers Escape Death Row?

Ricardo Harris gunned down two and wounded two in Oak Lawn in 1999. Cops say Oak Forest's Paul Runge went on a spree of rape and murder. Will a death penalty ban give them both a long life?

In the chronicles of Southland crime, there are few killers who rival Ricardo Harris and Paul Runge for cold-blooded depravity. Ask a local cop, and the details of their crimes come to mind readily, albeit not easily. The General Assembly has passed legislation that would repeal the death penalty. The governor has 60 days to sign the bill. The prospect that these men might escape Death Row does not sit well with those who worked to put them behind bars. In Oak Lawn, Harris gunned down two people in 1999 and wounded two sisters who miraculously survived. Division Chief Michael Murray thinks of the victims. “Just to have their justice pulled out from under them, I don’t know how they feel. For me, it’s a bit frustrating," Murray told Patch. …

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