Status hearing keeps pension lawsuit moving forward
At a status hearing in Sangamon County Circuit Court, Judge John Belz made clear that he intends to keep the legal challenge to SB 1 on the front burner.
The judge said he would first take up the motions filed by the We Are One Illinois union coalition and other plaintiffs, which argue that the Pension Protection Clause renders the new law impacting SERS and SURS participants unconstitutional. The judge reiterated that if the Court grants the plaintiffs’ motions, that would effectively resolve the question of whether SB1 is constitutional.
The judge ordered that the plaintiffs’ reply brief be submitted by October 31 and set oral argument in the case for November 20 at 1:30 p.m. He did not indicate when he intends to rule on the motions. Although a ruling could come on at that time, it is more likely that the Court will take the issue under advisement and rule sometime after argument.
The Attorney General, representing the state, is arguing that the state has reserve sovereign powers (also referred to as police powers) that would supersede the protections that the Illinois constitution provides for retirement benefits. The AG claims that the state’s current fiscal woes constitute a crisis of sufficient magnitude to justify invoking those sovereign powers.
AFSCME and our partners in the We Are One Illinois coalition dispute this claim, arguing that the pension protection clause cannot be ignored or overridden. The circuit court earlier issued an injunction that prevents the law from being implemented until this issue is resolved.
We Are One Illinois issued the following statement in response to the court’s action today: “As we have always maintained, and the recent Kanerva decision confirms, the pension protection clause of the Illinois Constitution is absolute and without exception. There is no merit to the State's purported justification for the unconstitutional diminishments and impairments that SB1 imposes. We are hopeful for a swift resolution in the plaintiffs' favor, so that we can work with legislators willing to develop a fair – and legal – solution to our state's challenges, together."
