It goes without saying that Chicago is known for their problems with violence – and like every other liberal city, they suffer from fiscal problems as well.
Thanks to the debt accumulated under Mayor Rahm Emmanuel’s watch, Chicago’s debt is now in “junk bond” territory, and is at the risk of further downgrades. When it comes to pension debt in particular (the largest percentage of their debt), Chicago was ranked the worst by Standard & Poor’s among fifteen other major cities. According to their study, Chicago “registered the highest annual debt, pension post-employment benefits costs as a percentage of governmental expenditures, and the highest debt and pension liability per capita. The burden in Chicago is more than $12,400 per person, double New York City’s more than $6,100 per person.”
And as many of you are aware, a government employee’s pension is dependent on a whole host of factors, the main being the number of years on the job, and the size of their salary at the time of retirement. Given that latter factor – the following statistic is even more shocking than it sounds….
More than one of every three employees for the City of Chicago made at least $100,000 in 2016 according to a new analysis from the Chicago Sun-Times.
The report revealed that 13,767 of the city’s 35,274 employees pulled in six figures, making up over $1.7 billion of the city’s $3.1 billion payroll. The number of employees making six figures is up from the previous year, with 36 individuals making more than Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s $216,210 paycheck.
The percentage of workers making six figures for the city is significantly higher than it is for Cook County or the state of Illinois. Of the county’s 25,158 employees, 2,918, or 11.6 percent, made at least $100,000. Of the state’s 65,535 employees, 8,640, or 13 percent, made at least $100,000 in 2016.
Ginger Evans, who serves as the aviation commissioner, tops the list with total pay of $400,000. The second highest paid employee is actually listed as an unidentified undercover police sergeant who is bringing in $261,442 per year.
H/T The Daily Caller
And the kicker? Among the ten highest paid employees is a man who isn’t an employee at all. In fact, police sergeant Donald Koplitz, who has been retired for three years, “earned”$252,482 in 2016 based on “accumulated compensatory time.”
Most local governments have a little extra fat that needs trimming. Chicago, meanwhile, deserves their own episode on “My 600 Pound Life.”
The residents of Chicago better demand their city get its fiscal house in order, quick. And the one man who will face the brunt of this outrage is Obama pal Emmanuel. If I had to guess, I’d say Rahm’s tenure as mayor won’t be seen as a successful one after this.
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