William Beavers' decision to trade his $98,125-a-year aldermanic paycheck for the $85,000-a-year salary paid to county commissioners might sound like a financial comedown. But it could be a ticket to a triple pension.No wonder they have high tax in Chicago.Someone has to pay for those outrageous benefits.
Once he leaves the city payroll, Beavers can start collecting the police pension he earned, but wasn't qualified to receive after retiring from the Chicago Police officer's job he left a generation ago.
When he retired from the force 25 years ago, Beavers had the required 20 years of service, but he was seven years shy of the minimum age requirement at the time. On Monday, Beavers characterized his police pension as "small...It might be $1,000 a month. It might be less."
He added, "I never drew a dime from the police pension. I never drew a dime from any pension....I had the time, but I didn't have the age."
More important, Beavers will be eligible to collect an aldermanic pension of $78,500 a year. That's 80 percent of the $98,125-a-year salary paid to City Council members. Both pensions would be in addition to the $85,000-a-year County Board paycheck.
If the 71-year-old alderman remains at the County Board for 10 years, he would also become eligible for a county pension -- at $68,000 a year or 80 percent of the county commissioner's salary.
The bottom line: If Beavers lives long enough, he could get a triple government pension.
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Chicago Alderman To Get Three Government Pensions
The Chicago Sun-Times reports:
