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The $600,000 Gift (Real cost of 20% pay bump)

(5 posts)

  1. TomJacobs
    Member

    According to publicly available information as to the calculation of IL school administrator retirement benefits, the 20% retroactive pay raise alone granted to D96 superintendent Dr. Lamberson will cost IL taxpayers $622,000 over the 27.9 year life expectancy when Dr. Lamberson retires in 2013 at age 58. See details of calculation below.

    Given that the state of IL just cut a significant number of social services benefits for people with real needs and hardships, I think this is a real problem.

    As far as I am concerned, local and state governments have 3 audiences that deserve priority concern and protection: the young, the sick, and the old. Anytime such governments prioritize the middle aged and priviledged, in a high income community with high achieving population, doing a job that is worry free with regard to payables, they undermine the credibility of government as a whole, and hurt the people who are in real need for our communal assistance.

    The raw numbers regarding Dr. Lamberson's retirement:

    Age of Dr. Lamberson at end of 2nd D96 contract: 58
    Life expectancy per IRS tables at age 58: 27.9 years
    Average salary over the last 4 years of employment: $295,000
    First year annual pension in 2013 (75% of $295,000): $221,600
    Annual pension in 2040 (at age 85): $490,000 (based on annual 3% increases, among other rules)
    Cumulative pension payout over 28 years of retirement: $9,400,000 (9.4 million)

    Cumulative pension payout over 28 years without 20% retroactive pay bump granted by D96 board earlier this year: $8,800,000

    Thus, the $600,000 gift.

    Next D96 school board meeting is Tuesday, Sept 15, at Ames School. Please start speaking up.

    Posted Friday Sep 11, 2009 22:42 #

  2. anonymous
    Member

    there were no replies or comments to this? what is wrong with this picture?

    do any of you work in the private sector? what is your pension? do you even have a pension?

    Mr. Jacobs, thanks for these numbers. However were you able to compile them? You must have a lot of administrative help.

    Are we just letting him have his way with us?

    Posted Wednesday Oct 28, 2009 00:02 #

  3. mr
    Member

    Public employee pensions are a problem. I work in private industry and I have a couple of pensions coming at age 60. My husband has two pensions. These pensions, for two people, along with social security, will not add up to $70,000 when I am able to collect social security in four years. The private industry pensions, the amounts are not guaranteed, if investments do poorly, the payout will be less than anticipated. They do not have COLA's, so we have to save for inflation over the next 30 years, unlike goverment pensions, which pay COLAs. Most private industry workers don't even get pensions anymore, and those that do, do not have defined benefit plans as government pensions do.

    By the way, if you are a social security recipient, there is a limit on how much you can earn. Not so with these educator pensions. You can collect these pensions, courtesy of the tax payers, not pay Illinois income tax, and work without forfeiting any of the pension.

    Call Governor Quinn, your state legislators, and anyone running for election in state goverment to demand that somthing be done. Our taxes will be raised to fund these pensions.

    I don't know if you all saw the Sun Times article about how much Judy Barr Topinka is collecting. I don't recall the amount, but it was some astronomical number. What was truly rediculous about it though, is that she was given some sort of position, which she held for two weeks, and for which she never collected a paycheck. The purpose of doing so was to bump up her pension substantially. I am pretty sure you can find the article on the sun times web site - it was written about six weeks ago.

    Posted Wednesday Oct 28, 2009 12:46 #

  4. ChrisHajer
    Member

    I remember seeing that Sun Times article, but their site seems to take down old content after a while. Here is something ABOUT the Sun Times article on the Chicago Defender site: http://is.gd/4G7YX

    Republican Judy Baar Topinka, 65, gets an annual pension of $141,482. The amount is based on a salary she was entitled to as state treasurer but didn't collect because the salary wasn't funded by the Legislature until after she retired. Topinka is running for state comptroller next year and her pension would be suspended if she wins.

    Here's a really good article about the same thing:
    http://bulletin.aarp.org/states/il/2009/36/articles/topinka_got_such_sweet_deal.html

    Posted Wednesday Oct 28, 2009 13:07 #

  5. mr
    Member

    Chances are the salary was increased and funded after retirement for the sole purpose of bumping up her pension. Not only are the pensions overly generous, the rules are rediculous.

    I say pay goverment employees appropriately and let them get social security and a cash balance pension plan similar to what is available in private industry. The pension system is a rip off to taxpayers and something needs to be done about it.

    Posted Wednesday Oct 28, 2009 15:32 #

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