Rauner's Pension Plan May Violate Federal Law, Officials Say

A pair of local elected officials introduced resolutions on Tuesday calling for “a rigorous examination” into whether Gov. Bruce Rauner’s plan to shift more state employees into a lower-cost pension plan would violate federal law and to examine its impact on workers and taxpayers, according to Evanston Now.

State Sen. Daniel Biss (D-Evanston) and State Rep. Elaine Nekritz (D-Northbrook) introduced SR 315 and HR 358 respectively - both calling for the state to work with the federal government to study the constitutionality and sustainability of the tier 2 level pension plan.

“The road to pension hell is paved with rash actions,” said Biss, who argued the tier 2 system the state adopted for new employees four years ago may not meet federal requirements that indicate their employees would need to be covered by Social Security unless an alternative plan includes equivalent benefits.

Rauner has proposed moving older state workers into the tier 2 plan starting July 1, unless they buy out their pensions and move to a 401(k)-style plan.

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