Civic Committee Statewide Public Awareness Campaign

Since the inception of its State Finance Task Force in 2006, the Civic Committee has warned that the State of Illinois is headed for financial implosion.  However, the State has not addressed its fiscal problems over the past few years.  Instead it has borrowed increasing amounts to pay its bills and has pushed off its current obligations to future generations.The State of Illinois now hangs on a financial precipice, with about $130 billion in unfunded retiree-related liabilities and a growing annual structural deficit which is approaching $15 billion.

The behaviors that have gotten the State into this fiscal mess must stop.  Continued borrowing to cover current costs will severely undermine the future of our State, our citizens and the companies that employ them. During this election season, the Civic Committee has launched a statewide public awareness campaign that will extend through the general election.  The campaign will seek to educate the public about the State’s fiscal crisis and make the State’s financial situation the focus of the electorate.

As part of this campaign, we have created 4 videos that describe the State's financial crisis and the Civic Committee's engagement with this issue.  These videos can be accessed below or on our new IllinoisIsBroke.com website.

The links below provide more information on the State’s financial crisis and the different components of the Civic Committee’s public awareness campaign.

One of the key elements of the campaign is our proposal to reform pension benefits for current State employees prospectively – protecting all rights that have already been earned. A legal analysis from Sidley Austin LLP is provided below which concludes that the pension clause of the Illinois Constitution does not preclude prospective changes in pension plans for current employees of the State or other members of State and municipal pension plans. Another analysis shows that the State is not the guarantor of pension benefits if the pension funds run out of money.

Legal analysis supporting pension reform for current state employees	Legal analysis showing that the State is not guarantor	Other Links: Press Release describing the Civic Committee's response to Governor Quinn's FY2011 Budget Address Press Release describing launch of public awareness campaign. Illinois Is Broke Ad run in major newspapers statewide before the primary election in February 2010. http://www.IllinoisIsBroke.com . This website features information about the State’s financial situation, as well as a portal for citizens to contact candidates and elected officials to express their concerns. Civic Committee State Finance Priorities. Tri-fold brochure describing the Civic Committee's recommendations for addressing the State's fiscal crisis. Illinois State Finance - A Study in Failure. Remarks from the January 12, 2010 Commercial Club Luncheon providing background on the State's fiscal crisis and the Civic Committee's public awareness campaign.

What is Real Budget Reform?	Why Should We Care?
How Did We Get in This Mess?	Why is the Civic Committee Involved?