September 29, 2011 _ On October 3 and 4 in Chicago, the state’s most prominent leaders in the debate on public pension policy will gather at the Union League Club of Chicago for the IGPA State Summit 2011: A Bold New Dialogue on Public Pensions. Hosted by the University of Illinois Institute of Government and Public Affairs, the goal of the event is to provide neutral ground for productive conversation that examines an array of options for policy change.
The Illinois pension system has been at the forefront of public debate this year. Nationwide, underfunding of state pension funds totals more than $3 trillion. Illinois has the worst underfunded pension liability in the nation. In May 2010, Illinois’ unfunded pension liabilities were officially estimated at more than $79 billion.
After pension reform stalled in Springfield this spring, the state’s legislators, employers, newspapers, and citizens called for a focused, inclusive conversation about the issue. The State Summit 2011 will engage a group of top decision makers in discussion about new options for pension modification in Illinois.
The summit will feature keynote presentations by two nationally renowned experts on pension policy. The evening of October 3 will feature Alicia Munnell, the Peter F. Drucker Professor of Management Sciences at Boston College’s Carroll School of Management and Director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. On the morning of October 4, Nick Berardino, General Manager of the Orange County Employees Association, will share insight from the successful compromise for pension reform he led in California.
“We are fortunate to have an opportunity to learn from two exceptional leaders on pension policy,” said IGPA Director Dr. Robert F. Rich. “Munnell and Berardino will provide invaluable insight that will help participants think creatively about best practices used in other states to tackle the unique situation we face in Illinois.”
Several panels will feature top leaders in the public pension debate in Illinois. A panel of legislators will include members of the House and Senate Pension and Investments Committees, Sen. Kwame Raoul (D), Sen. Bill Brady (R), Rep. Elaine Nekritz (D), and Deputy Republican Leader Rep. Tim Schmitz (R).
A panel of reactors will include Jeffrey Brown, Director of the University of Illinois College of Business’ Center for Business and Public Policy and Anthony Laden, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Illinois at Chicago. A second panel will feature Henry Bayer, Executive Director of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Council 31 and Tyrone Fahner, President of The Civic Committee of The Commercial Club.
Participants will form small groups to discuss several issues pertinent to Illinois public pension policy and test ideas for modification. The goal of the discussion is to develop a set of principles to guide the design of future pension modification plans.
