SPRINGFIELD – State Representative Joe Sosnowski (R-Rockford) has filed a package of bills that will save taxpayer dollars by reforming government through better transparency, efficiency and accountability.
“The status-quo has been worn out,” said Rep. Sosnowski. “The public doesn’t trust government to use their tax dollars responsibly. We need to rebuild that trust by making commonsense reforms that will close loopholes that continue to hurt taxpayers. The legislation I filed will accomplish that goal.”
House Bill 4509 focuses on closing a loophole that allows public pension spiking. For example, according to an article published in the Chicago Tribune, “This loophole allowed a former Bloomington human resources director to spike his pension from $92,000 to $113,000.”
“There are public employees nearing retirement that cash in early on their unused time-off which adds to their retiring salaries, thus spiking their pensions,” said Rep. Sosnowski. “This bill would add a timeframe for cashing in unused time-off so that the income would not have an effect on a worker’s pension. This will allow local governments to save significant amounts of taxpayer dollars and improve the solvency of the retirement system.”
Additional highlights of the legislative reform package include:
- House Bill 6090 – would stop abuses in the state plans regarding overtime.
- House Bill 6091 – reduces state stipends for county officials based on population.
- House Bill 6092 – will remove the state unfunded mandate requiring local units of government to publish public notices in newspapers. This aligns with the Local Government Consolidation and Unfunded Mandates Task Force findings.
- House Bill 6088 – prohibits a public employee from receiving a pension at the same time that individual is actively working and contributing to another defined contribution system.