Full Text of HR0698 101st General Assembly
HR0698 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate the Chicago Teachers' | 4 | | Pension Fund (CTPF) on 125 years of continuous operations; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, On July 1, 1895, the Illinois General Assembly | 6 | | established the first teacher's pension system in
Illinois, and | 7 | | the second in the nation, in order to help attract and retain | 8 | | professional teachers and to ensure
the financial stability and | 9 | | dignity of teachers in retirement; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Under the governance of the Chicago Board of | 11 | | Education, the CTPF struggled in its early days with
funding | 12 | | issues and had difficulty developing a sustainable model that | 13 | | would provide long-term financial
security for its members; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, The financial crisis in the pension fund became an | 15 | | issue of social justice and was taken up by activist and
| 16 | | reformer Jane Addams, who was known as the "mother" of social | 17 | | work; she was elected to the pension board as
president on | 18 | | August 30, 1905 and subsequently pushed for pension reform in | 19 | | the State legislature; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Under the guidance of Jane Addams, the pension | 21 | | reform law of 1907 enacted reforms that set the
groundwork for |
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| 1 | | stabilization and granted teachers control over governance by | 2 | | establishing an independent
governing board with | 3 | | representation that included six active teacher | 4 | | representatives; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, CTPF has operated as an independent organization, | 6 | | governed by a board of trustees and
administered by an | 7 | | executive director who oversees operation of the fund and | 8 | | assures that benefits
continue to be paid out on a timely | 9 | | basis; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, For the past 125 years, CTPF has weathered the | 11 | | historic events that have challenged our nation,
including | 12 | | wars, conflicts, economic depressions, and recessions; and | 13 | | WHEREAS, The pension fund's first investment of $16,000 was | 14 | | wisely invested, and today, the fund includes over $10 billion | 15 | | in diversified assets; it pays over $1.5 billion annually in | 16 | | benefits for CTPF members,
which generates important economic | 17 | | activity for the State of Illinois; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, CTPF trustees have set sound and responsible | 19 | | investment policies, and these policies have
guided the fund to | 20 | | achieve a long-term, 35-year rate of return of 8.54%, exceeding | 21 | | the fund's target of
7.0%; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, CTPF's excellent and transparent financial | 2 | | stewardship of public funds has been consistently
recognized by | 3 | | the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) with
the | 4 | | awarding of a prestigious Certificate of Achievement for | 5 | | Excellence in Financial Reporting; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, The fund's membership has grown from 8,000 initial | 7 | | members to over 87,000 total
members, including nearly 29,000 | 8 | | active and 28,500 pensioners who count on the fund as their | 9 | | primary
source of financial security; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, The trustees continue to work to safeguard and | 11 | | secure benefits for the fund's members, and
together, with a | 12 | | dedicated staff, continue to fulfill their mission; therefore, | 13 | | be it
| 14 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 15 | | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 16 | | we congratulate the Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund (CTPF) on | 17 | | 125 years of continuous operations, and we wish them many more | 18 | | successful years; and be it further
| 19 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 20 | | presented to the Board of Trustees of the Chicago Teachers' | 21 | | Pension Fund as a symbol of our respect and esteem.
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