In accordance with the 20-year balloting provision contained in the State Constitution, voters will have the opportunity to vote to call a Constitutional Convention on November 4, 2008. With the upcoming November 4 ballot measure, Human Resource Services has received several requests from employees for information regarding the contents of the State Constitution in relation to the State Universities Retirement System (SURS) or State employee pension benefits.

General Information

The Secretary of State (http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/) has published information regarding the proposed call for a Constitutional Convention. With respect to pension benefits, the current Illinois Constitution does contain language providing that pension benefits for eligible State employees will not be “diminished or impaired.” This specific provision in Article XIII reads as follows:

SECTION 5. PENSION AND RETIREMENT RIGHTS

Membership in any pension or retirement system of the State, any unit of local government or school district, or any agency or instrumentality thereof, shall be an enforceable contractual relationship, the benefits of which shall not be diminished or impaired. (http://www.ilga.gov/commission/lrb/con13.htm)

This section is often referred to as the “pension protection” or “non-impairment” clause of the State Constitution. Should Illinois’ voters determine that a convention is to be called then as indicated through a publication issued by the Secretary of State, “delegates may propose changes to parts of the current Constitution, write a new Constitution, or make no changes whatsoever.” And, “Once the delegates complete their work, the voters will have an opportunity to approve or reject proposed changes” (Jesse White - Secretary of State, September 2008).*

The purpose of this correspondence is to confirm that the Constitution does contain such provisions related to State employee pension benefits. The convention process may result in any part of the Constitutional language being reviewed and there is no way to predict which parts (if any) would be considered by future delegates or proposed for amendment to voters.

Informational links related to the ballot measure sponsored by related State agencies and the State Universities Annuitants Association are outlined below:

The Legislative Review Unit
Constitutional Convention Referendum Resources
http://www.ilga.gov/commission/lru/conconref.html

State Universities Annuitants Association
http://www.suaa.org/

Secretary of State
http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/

This correspondence is for informational purposes only.