Park pension deal not acceptable

I was appalled to read about the pension deal Glen Ellyn Park Director Cory Atwell and Finance Director Laurie Woods orchestrated for themselves and was equally disturbed by board President Ed Hess's justification that it would “save the taxpayers money.”

That statement is an insult to every taxpayer in Glen Ellyn. Illinois has a $15 billion budget deficit and as staggering as that is, even more crushing is the estimated $80 billion to $150 billion unfunded pension liability. This financial crisis means, for starters, Illinois pays higher interest to borrow money to pay bills, means investors won't buy Illinois bonds because of the risk of default, and means Illinois has a credit rating worse than Greece or Portugal.

Our legislative leaders are scurrying to pass a massive income tax increase while doing nothing to address the pension crisis. Increasing public pensions costs taxpayers money. Decreasing salaries, pensions and eliminating jobs in the public sector saves taxpayers money. This is a concept public officials at every level in Illinois desperately need to grasp. So Woods and Atwell awarding themselves a 22 percent pension increase and their “as long as I get mine” attitude amid this dysfunctional financial climate is beyond unacceptable.

Sue Steigleder

Glen Ellyn