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 We Are One Illinois and other parties filed a motion in Sangamon
County Circuit Court on Thursday asking for a ruling in their favor
in light of a July Illinois Supreme Court decision that underscored
state constitutional protection for public sector retirement
benefits.
The state's high court ruled on July 3 that health care for retired
state workers is a pension benefit protected by a state
constitutional provision prohibiting the diminishment or impairment
of those benefits.
The same provision is the focus of the lawsuits filed against the
pension reform law the Illinois legislature passed in December. The
law reduces and suspends cost-of-living increases for pensions,
raises retirement ages and limits the salaries on which pensions are
based.
 "We believe, then, that the state’s defense is without merit and so
have asked the court in this motion to rule in our favor on the
state’s defense that seeks to justify" the pension reform law, We
Are One Illinois said in a statement.
The state has contended that its sovereign powers allow it to act in
a fiscal emergency. Illinois has a $100 billion unfunded pension
liability and the country's worst funded state retirement system.
Illinois's credit ratings are also the lowest among U.S. states.
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A spokeswoman for Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan did not
immediately respond on Friday to a request for comment on the union
coalition's motion.
Sangamon County Judge John Belz suspended the law in May and the
next hearing in the case is set for Sept. 4. In the meantime, the
coalition said it is "ready to work with any legislator willing to
develop a fair and legal solution to our state’s challenges."
(Reporting by Karen Pierog; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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