IMMIGRATION
More Than 155,000 Standard IDs and Driver’s Licenses Issued to Illinois Noncitizens in 5 Months. Since Law Went Into Effect. More than 155,000 standardized IDs and driver’s licenses for non-U.S. citizens have been issued in the five months since an Illinois law went into effect that aims to protect noncitizens from discrimination, according to numbers from the Illinois Secretary of State’s office.
The law, which went into effect in July, grants noncitizens regardless of immigration status the ability to obtain a standardized state driver’s license replacing the Temporary Visitor Driver’s License, which displayed a purple banner and the words “Not Valid For Identification.” […]
The four-year driver’s license for noncitizens features a standard red banner and replaces “Not Valid For Identification” with “Federal Limits Apply.” Noncitizens who are unable or choose not to drive also have the option to obtain a standardized ID.
Since the law went into effect, the office has issued 49,852 state IDs and 106,026 driver’s licenses for noncitizens, according to Illinois Secretary of State spokesperson Max Walczyk. Read more from WTTW.
House Bill 3882 was passed into law in 2023, with no House Republicans supporting the legislation to provide standard driver’s licenses to noncitizens.
PENSIONS
Illinois’ unfunded pension liabilities at near-record $143.7 billion. The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability (CGFA), in its 2024 Special Pension Briefing, reported that Illinois’ unfunded pension liabilities totaled more than $143.7 billion at the end of Fiscal Year 2024 (June 30, 2024). This near-record figure is an increase from the equivalent $142.2 billion figure posted in the previous fiscal year and is only slightly below the all-time-record pension deficit of $144.2 billion posted in FY20.
The five State pension systems covered by the report cover the future costs of non-healthcare retirement benefits payable to vested public-sector employees in the following categories: (a) public school teachers and educators, (b) state employees, (c) employees of Illinois colleges and universities, (d) the judges of the circuit, appellate, and Supreme courts, and (e) members of the Illinois General Assembly. The $143.7 billion deficit reflects the collective unfunded pension liabilities of all five systems. The largest share (more than half of the total) is the $82.9 billion in unfunded liabilities posted by the Teachers Retirement System. TRS is the pension system that pays retirement benefits to teachers and other educational personnel in school districts throughout the state.
CGFA’s report indicates that none of these five systems have even one-half of the funds they will need to have in hand, based on generally accepted actuarial standards, to meet their future contractual obligations. The five systems are funded at ratios ranging from 46.3% (TRS), to only 24.6% for the pension system that supports retired Illinois lawmakers and legislators.
It is important to note that an “unfunded pension liability” is a forward-looking actuarial and accounting concept. It reflects the funds that each pension system actually has on hand for investment returns, to which are added an actuarially-sound estimate (based on current global economic patterns and interest rates) as to likely future investment returns; these assets are balanced against the likely total of benefits that will have to be paid out, based on future life expectancies, to current and future beneficiaries that are vested in the system. If the quantity of expected future benefits exceeds the quantity of expected future assets, the pension system must post an unfunded pension liability total. All five Illinois State-managed pension systems have made this calculation and posted these liabilities, and CGFA has compiled these five data sets to generate this week’s report.
These unfunded pension liabilities are debt-equivalent moral obligations of the State of Illinois and its taxpayers. If pension debts pile up, the State’s credit rating risks downgrades. The State of Illinois must sell debt whenever it needs to make serious investments in its roads, bridges, and other public capital infrastructure. Illinois currently has a single-A credit rating with all three major New York-based credit rating agencies, which is well below average for large public-sector debt issuers (the rating system goes up to ‘triple-AAA’) and is lower than the credit rating posted by most U.S. states.
ISRAEL
House Minority Leader Part of Midwest Delegation to Israel. House Minority Leader Tony McCombie was in Israel this week as part of the State of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Midwest Delegation. The Delegation met with leaders from the Knesset (Israel Parliament) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, toured Jerusalem’s Old City with site visits to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Via Dolorosa, and the Western Wall, and visited the World Holocaust Remembrance Center. McCombie has been vocal in her support for Israel, and is refiling a resolution in the 104th General Assembly in remembrance of October 7th:
“I am grateful to have the opportunity to be in Israel and show my unequivocal support at such a pivotal time. Over a year ago, Hamas terrorists initiated a deadly assault on Israel, slaughtering more than 1,200 men, women, and children and wounding thousands more. More than 250 people were taken hostage, several being American. I am eager to listen and learn from elected officials, government leaders, and community-based groups here to understand how the State of Illinois can be a stronger, truthful partner going forward.”