[email protected]
According to today’s Pantagraph, the IMRF (Illinois Municipal Retirement Funds) is changing their accounting, thus the funding of accounts will look much better. MUCH!
This is the same IMRF that manages the funds, performance has been dismal at best. Besides, they can always come back and raise taxes for more money. No worries.
Are you going to believe IMRF or Fitch Ratings service? As previously reported, Fitch is threatening to downgrade Bloomington’s credit rating because of the underfunded pensions, and that’s why Judy Stearns voted against the budget. (http://blnnews.com/2013/04/10/judy-stearns-position-on-the-bloomington-budget/)
Once again, the Pantagraph falls for whatever they are fed. Numbers lie, and those using numbers can convince the uniformed. Accounting standards CAN NOT be drastically changed (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) and should always be viewed with suspicion when they are re-written.
Search this site for “Pensions” if you want the real story.
“This is the same IMRF that manages the funds, performance has been dismal at best.”
are you referring to the 29 year, 9.95% average return from 1982-2011 as “dismal”?
I’m talking about this rpess release posted on their site. Investments have taken a much riskier turn in recent years, even under-preforming when the overall market was up.
OAK BROOK, Ill. – March 14, 2012 – After a year of frequent and sometimes dramatic swings in the financial markets, investment returns for the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) finished flat in 2011.
Overall, the total return for IMRF was a negative 0.5 percent, compared to a 13.6 percent positive return in 2010. The investment loss was approximately $106 million. The fund finished the year with $24.7 billion in assets.
These returns are based on unaudited investment return data. Finalized investment return data for IMRF will be available in early May 2012.
IMRF administers retirement, disability and death benefits on behalf of approximately 3,000 local units of government around the state. Its independent board of trustees, guided by professional investment managers, invests in a highly diversified portfolio that includes a broad mix of domestic and international stocks and bonds, real estate, private equity funds and hedge funds.