Chicago pensions: Citizens are burdened with huge unfunded liabilities.

Back in November, we added a dark new dimension — a number somewhere “north of $7,000” — to the discussion of how badly your state lawmakers have buried this state’s pension system in debt. That 7 grand is the amount of unfunded pension liabilities that may confront you and every one of Illinois’ 12.9 million citizens by the end of June.

If you add up all the overpromising and overborrowing and failures to fully fund state pensions, you get a total approaching $95 billion. Dividing that amount by the state’s population puts your personal state pension debt … north of $7,000. Every person in your family, the baby included? Another $7,000 apiece. Your every neighbor? Every co-worker? You could have everyone send $7,000 now, in care of a state legislator who represents you. He or she can collect the rest when the final number gets calculated in June.

via Chicago pensions: Citizens are burdened with huge unfunded liabilities. – chicagotribune.com.