Illinois

Submitted by Michael Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

New accounting rules show Chicago has understated its pension liabilities by $11.5 billion.

At the end of 2015 the stated liability was $7.1 billion. Today it’s $18.6 billion. That’s a jump in net liabilities of 168%.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has hopes pinned on union concessions and help from the state legislature. Neither is likely.

Out of Money in 10 Years

Bloomberg reports Chicago’s Pension-Fund Troubles Just Became $11.5 Billion Bigger.

Submitted by Michael Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

Illinois state workers, are the highest paid in the nation.

Yet, despite the fact that Illinois is for all practical purposes insolvent, the AFSCME union demands four-year raises ranging from 11.5 to 29 percent, overtime after 37.5 hours of work per week, five weeks of vacation and enhanced health care coverage.

AFSCME workers already get platinum healthcare benefits that would make nearly everyone in the country green with envy.

As Illinois struggles to get its fiscal house in order (good luck with that), it has devolved into funding key programs with one-off stopgap measures rather than approving an overall comprehensive budget. The state remains the only remaining state without a 2016 plan.

By Dylan White of Genscape

Cushing, OK, Crude Stocks, USGC Exports Hit Record Highs after U.S. Midcontinent Refinery Work

Cushing, OK, crude inventories reached a record high May 3, 2016 of more than 70mn bbls after refinery outages in the U.S. Midcontinent displaced barrels to both storage tanks and the U.S. Gulf Coast. Without significant new storage capacity, Midcontinent stocks could reach maximum operating capacity this year, according to Genscape.

As we've known for quite some time now, Illinois is completely insolvent, and in large part due to enormous pension liabilities which as of December were underfunded to the tune of $111 billion. Not only is the state insolvent, its millionaires can't get out fast enough to avoid the massive tax hikes that will be coming in what is sure to be a failed effort to plug budget holes, as well as the soaring criminality in cities such as Chicago which recently just passed the historic milestone of 1,000 gunshot victims in the fastest time in decades.