
“I’m sounding the alarm today. Every household in Illinois is responsible for the repayment of $10,000 to reimburse our bond holders in the coming years. The backlog of other bills and our unfunded pension and retiree health care liabilities, when combined with the bond repayments, brings household debt to a whopping $42,000. Most families do not have that kind of cash,” the state treasurer said. “We need to cut our spending and break our unsustainable borrowing cycle before we realize a further financial disaster.”
Troubling numbers:
Illinois taxpayers’ debt from borrowing = $45 billion (was $12 billion in 2002; $25 billion of the $45 billion is from pension debt)
Illinois taxpayers’ unpaid bills = $8 billion
Illinois’ unfunded pension and retiree health care liabilities = $140 billion
Each Illinois family shoulders this debt = $42,000 per household