Madigan pension fix would save $25 billion less than estimated

SPRINGFIELD — The estimated savings on a pension proposal backed by Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan earlier this year is nearly $25 billion less than originally thought.

That’s because the Teachers’ Retirement System — one of Illinois’ five pension systems — says it made a mistake in its calculations. The change was outlined in a Monday letter to a bipartisan panel tasked with coming up with an approach to solving Illinois’ nearly $100 billion pension crisis.

Madigan’s plan involves across-the-board cuts in benefits. It was originally touted to save Illinois about $187 billion over 30 years. However, the new estimate is about $163 billion in the same period.

Another plan from Senate President John Cullerton, which had union support, was estimated to save roughly $47 billion over the same time frame.