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Saturday, October 4, 2025

Analysis: Kewanee Firefighters Pension Fund would go bankrupt in 17 years without taxpayer subsidy

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Without members and taxpayers subsidizing its revenue, the Kewanee Firefighters Pension Fund would have lost $493,753 in 2018, according to a Rock Island Today analysis of the latest data reported to the Illinois Department of Insurance Pension Division.

The fund has $8,196,402 in total assets. If the fund’s annual losses stay the same, it would run out of money in 17 years without these subsidies.

The fund earned $444,874 in investment income and other revenue in 2018. At the same time, it paid out $938,627 in expenses, according to the 2019 biennial report detailing the health of each of the state’s pension funds and retirement systems. The difference between the two shows the fund’s annual loss without subsidies.

Taxpayers added $479,673 to the fund’s revenue last year – an amount that has increased from $214,782 five years ago. Members contributed an additional $96,906 – $13,687 more than five years ago.

In all, subsidies amounted to $576,579 in 2018.

Kewanee Firefighters Pension Fund non-subsidy revenue over five years
YearTotal non-subsidy revenueTotal expensesOutcome without subsidies
2018$444,874$938,627-$493,753
2017$675,749$924,087-$248,338
2016-$152,643$818,569-$971,212
2015$318,623$768,127-$449,504
2014$622,193$730,183-$107,990

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