A Sangamon County judge has ruled in a case not directly involving the state’s teachers that the state can demand higher payments from retirees for health care.
While retired teachers already pay almost all of the premium for their health care through TRIP, the Teacher Retirement Insurance Program, the ruling suggests that health care is not a benefit that is protected by the Illinois constitution’s pension protection clause.
The ruling will be appealed, of course.
There is a concern that the ruling by the judge gives new life to Senate President Cullerton’s SB1.
SB1 is a mash-up of the Cross/Nekritz/Biss pension bomb (which almost everybody believes will not survive a legal challenge) and Cullerton’s own forced choice option. It would force retirees to choose between their COLA and access to TRIP.
This past week, reports coming from Springfield suggested that Cullerton’s SB1 was on life-support.
On the one hand it was under attack by big corporate money in Chicago who thought the bill didn’t cut enough from state employee pension benefits.
It was always in trouble with some legislators who felt that the bill did not qualify in terms of consideration – a choice to retirees that offers options that were of equal value to current benefits. Cullerton’s bill offers a choice between two bad options that reduce current benefits.
However, the real challenge to Cullerton’s bill is that he wildly over-estimates the savings.
Originally supporters of SB1 thought 40% of retirees would choose to remain in TRIP and give up their guaranteed COLA.
Nobody believes that now.
If he believed that retirees would choose to give up their COLA, it was always a fool’s dream.
Is our COLA a constitutionally protected benefit?
A court may decide one way or the other.
Unless we put enough pressure on legislators to kill the bill.
And face the reality that the answer lies in increasing revenue.
As it always has.
Fred Klonsky 
Fred, I look forward to your posts and almost always agree with your comments. However, I believe it is inaccurate to state that retired teachers pay almost all of the premium for their health care through TRIP. By my calculations, our premiums are 75% subsidized by the state. Am I missing something? That is why the forced choice proposal in Cullerton’s bill is a big deal, especially for folks who are not old enough to go on Medicare. That said, if we do wind up having to choose, I believe keeping the current COLA will be the best choice for most folks. Hopefully it won’t come to that. Sincerely, Phil Jones New Lenox
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Phil,
We must be looking at different calculations. This year the state will pay about $95 million dollars into Trip. Local districts and active teachers also pay a similar amount. The rest of the premiums are paid by retirees when they join TRIP. It is in the hundreds of millions of dollars. In actuality, what the state primarily does is allow teachers access to TRIP.
OK. I see what you are saying. I was failing to take into account all of the money I piad into the TRS Health Insurance Program while I was still working.
The constant editorials in the Tribune urging legislators to be “brave leaders” never mention raising revenue as an option. The rhetoric cites benefit cutting to retirees as the only possible solution. On another note, Judy Barr Topinka is all upset because she is never invited to the caucus meetings to give assistance with problem solving using real numbers. Hey, Judy, haven’t you noticed that Illinois legislators do not want to know about real solutions like Ralph Matire’s? That would be an honest approach.
From the statute creating the teachers insurance program — 5 ILCS 375/6.5(h):
The program of health benefits provided under this Section may be amended by the State and is not intended to be a pension or retirement benefit subject to protection under Article XIII, Section 5 of the Illinois Constitution.