Judge Rules Chicago Pension Reform Law is Unconstitutional

A 2014 law aimed at shoring up two of Chicago's financially shaky public worker retirement systems violates pension protections in the Illinois constitution, a judge ruled on Friday.
In a written opinion, Cook County Circuit Court Judge Rita Novak rejected Chicago's argument that members of its municipal and laborers' retirement systems are getting a net benefit under the law.
The city contended that without the law, the two pension systems would run out of money within 10 to 13 years and that under Illinois law, payments to retirees would be the obligation of the pension funds, not Chicago. Labor unions and retirees who sued over the law claimed it violated the state constitution's pension clause.