The Daily Parker

Politics, Weather, Photography, and the Dog

Chicago's latest recognition

It's so depressing sometimes, living in the Greatest City in North America and realizing that we have the worst pension system in the country:

The city of Chicago is the local government most burdened by unfunded retirement plans in the nation, with a pension debt that's more than eight times annual revenues, according to a new study by Moody's Investors Service.

The city's unfunded pension obligations total $29.80 billion, based on a three-year average calculated by Moody's. That is 15.9 percent of its property tax base, making it the highest in the nation by that measure as well, according to the report, which tracks the 50 largest local governments based on outstanding debt.

On the other hand, climate change is making Chicago a little more pleasant, even without the record El NiƱo forming in the Pacific right now. Crime is down, green space is up, and the lake is clean. It's really a great time to live here.

We are going to have to pay those pensions, though.

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