Pritzker Proposes Fully Funded Illinois Pensions by 2048

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said he is reviving a two-year-old proposal to fully fund the state’s pension systems by 2048, tackling one of its largest long-term liabilities as he also works to close a looming budget gap.

Illinois’s retirement systems carry more than $144 billion in unfunded liability and are currently required to reach a 90% funding ratio by 2045, up from about 47% today. Pritzker’s plan — which failed to gain traction when first introduced in 2024 — would raise the target to 100% and extend the payment schedule by three years.