Universities Offer Partial Illinois Pension Fix

Illinois university employees would pay more toward their pensions and receive annual retirement-pay increases tied to inflation in a reform plan the Senate president supports.

The Springfield bureau of Lee Enterprises newspapers (http://tinyurl.com/n2bpvw4) reports the plan would also shift the employers' portion of pension payments from the state to universities and community colleges over a dozen years.

Spokeswoman Rikeesha Phelon said Sunday that Senate President John Cullerton would conduct a hearing on it Tuesday as lawmakers return to Springfield for a special session to deal with a nearly $100 billion pension debt.

Glenn Poshard is president of Southern Illinois University. He told The Southern Illinoisan it could be a model for a comprehensive solution.