State Lawmaker Wants To Keep Blagojevich From Collecting Pension
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- On Dec. 10, deposed Gov. Blagojevich will turn 55, and that means he can start collecting his state pension.
But as WBBM Newsradio's Regine Schlesinger reports, a state lawmaker is determined to keep that from happening.
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As a former Illinois lawmaker, Blagojevich stands to collect $65,000 per year. State Rep. Jack Franks (D-Woodstock) wants to keep Blagojevich from collecting. He is appealing to the board of the General Assembly Retirement System to take action when it meets Wednesday.
This is the board's last meeting until next spring, Franks said.
"The former governor could ask for his pension while sitting in a federal penitentiary," Franks said.
If the pension were pulled, the convicted and ousted governor would be eligible for a refund of the $120,000 he paid into the pension. He also still qualifies for about $15,000 a year for his six years as a U.S. congressman.
Blagojevich is awaiting sentencing, after being convicted at his retrial this summer on 17 various corruption counts. Among them were llegations that he tried to sell or trade an appointment to the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama in late 2008.
Blagojevich faces a maximum of 305 years behind bars if he were to receive consecutive sentences for each individual count, but legal experts have said it is likely he'll be sentenced to somewhere between 6 and 15 years.
