A worry weekend.
Last week Madigan got what he wanted.
62 Illinois House Representatives voted for his amended Senate Bill 1 which would gut public employee pensions. It would cut cost of living increases, raise the age when COLAs would be applicable, cap pensionable earnings and increase worker contributions to the pension system.
All unconstitutional in the opinion of many. Including me.
51 voted no.
2 voted present.
Present?
“How do you feel about the constitutionality and morality of cutting pensions to those who contributed to the system their entire working lives?”
“Oh. I would say I feel present.”
Senate President John Cullerton is said to be negotiating with the leaders of the state’s public employee unions on a alternative deal involving giving pension members a choice of options in exchange for consideration.
An email blast from IEA President Cinda Klickna said in part,
62 Illinois House Representatives voted for his amended Senate Bill 1 which would gut public employee pensions. It would cut cost of living increases, raise the age when COLAs would be applicable, cap pensionable earnings and increase worker contributions to the pension system.
All unconstitutional in the opinion of many. Including me.
51 voted no.
2 voted present.
Present?
“How do you feel about the constitutionality and morality of cutting pensions to those who contributed to the system their entire working lives?”
“Oh. I would say I feel present.”
Senate President John Cullerton is said to be negotiating with the leaders of the state’s public employee unions on a alternative deal involving giving pension members a choice of options in exchange for consideration.
An email blast from IEA President Cinda Klickna said in part,
Sunday reads.
Confessions of a Chicago public school parent who doesn’t have Arne Duncan on speed dial.
Who is Tanya Saunders-Wolfe and why is she using the pages of the anti-union Chicago Tribune to say all these terrible things about Karen Lewis.
That story about the principal that fired the security guard to hire an art teacher? Bogus.
NJDOE brings segregation, attrition, high-spending to Camden.
Why is the crooked UNO boss, Juan Rangel, on the Chicago Building Commission? Ask Rahm.
What’s with progressive Evanston? Two of the three lawmakers who represent parts of Evanston voted in favor of a pension killing bill.
What’s happening at Crenshaw is representative of the death of the large, urban comprehensive high school all across the country. In New York, research from the New School suggests that Mayor Bloomberg’s efforts to break up large, underperforming high schools have, in fact, led to the founding of higher-quality schools. The problem is that students whose schools close may not end up enrolled in those better schools; instead, a significant number of them will be enrolled by default in the nearest large high school that is still open, which itself has extremely low test scores. That school, in turn, will eventually be shut down, creating what the New