84th House candidates find slight disagreement on pensions

Don't be surprised if the Democratic and Republican candidates for state House in the 84th District agree on a few things.

But also don't be surprised to hear Democratic incumbent Stephanie Kifowit and Republican challenger Krishna Bansal disagree on divisive state issues such as pension reform.

Kifowit and Bansal recently shared similar views on several topics during an endorsement interview with the Daily Herald, but the candidates said they would take different approaches to continuing pension reform if the Supreme Court strikes down parts of the changes approved last December.

The court could decide whether cuts to pension benefits are constitutional. If decreases in pension benefits for state workers are declared unconstitutional, Bansal said he would support the creation of 401K-style retirement savings plans for state employees.

He called underfunded pensions one of the "biggest problems the state is facing" and said all vested pensions should be paid as promised. Future participants, however, should be allowed to handle their own investments in a 401K, Bansal said.

Kifowit said the state constitution has an "astute pension protection clause" that might prevent cuts from being made. If that's the case, she said she could support a voluntary 401K option, but switching all state employees to that type of retirement plan might be costly because those employees then would have to join social security.

"All tools need to be considered," she said.

Kifowit, 42, of Oswego, is in her first term representing the 84th District. She is a former Aurora alderman and Marine veteran who has worked as a substitute teacher and financial adviser.

After joining the appropriations committee and starting a veterans' task force on suicide during her first term, Kifowit said she is running for re-election to continue improving life for Illinois residents.

"I didn't serve my country to live in a state that's 50th out of 50," Kifowit said. "I served my country to make sure that we have a great place to live in and that people have safe environments, safe neighborhoods; they can get a job and they can take care of their families."

Bansal, 43, of Naperville, is president and CEO of Aurora-based Q1 Technologies, Inc. He leads city-sponsored Indian community outreach groups in Naperville and Aurora and ran unsuccessfully for school board in Indian Prairie Unit District 204.

Bansal said he used his values and education to chase opportunities he found in the U.S. in search of the "American dream," and he wants that chance at success to be available to all Illinois residents.

"I want these opportunities to be available for our kids, my children, every child in Illinois," Bansal said. "We need to have people who have experience as a parent, as a businessman, working in different areas to go and work on fixing the system and bringing the state back."

Kifowit and Bansal are running against each other in the Nov. 4 election to represent a district that covers parts of Aurora, Naperville, Oswego, Montgomery and Boulder Hill.