Tell Lawmakers to Stop the Games! Support HB 3162

2/27/2013

House Speaker Mike Madigan has called for an open debate on pension proposals tomorrow in Springfield. This procedural approach skips the democratic committee process that allows public comment and opens the door for a barrage of last-minute, so-called "solutions" that would slash retirement benefits for workers and retirees.
 
If you think this sounds like a three-ring circus, you're right. We expect to see amendments to freeze or eliminate Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA's). We expect to see attempts to increase the retirement age or employee contributions by 5 percent. And we expect other equally unconstitutional and disastrous trial balloons floated in the weeks ahead, too.
 
Lawmakers are playing a dangerous game, and we need your help to stop it. E-mail them now!
 
Currently, there is only one bill in the House that the IFT and our We Are One Coalition partners support. It is HB 3162 (sponsored by Reps. Hoffman and Poe).
 
It is critical that you contact your legislators IMMEDIATELY. Urge them to support HB 3162 and vote NO on any other proposals.
 
E-mail them NOW.

We believe the Hoffman-Poe bill is fair and Constitutional. It includes three essential components: guaranteed funding, the creation of a pension stabilization fund, and our willingness to share in the sacrifice - so long as a comprehensive plan is fair and sustainable.

We believe that these elements, in combination with identifying revenue, are necessary pieces of the puzzle to solve the state's budget crisis.

The attack on our benefits through other proposals is not simply unconstitutional and unfair. It's much worse: it doesn't even address the systemic cause of the problem.
 
Send a convenient, pre-written message to your lawmakers to tell them that the time for games is long over. We need a fair, effective solution, for once and for all.

E-mail your lawmakers TODAY!