Illinois Governor Won’t Start Pensions Campaign for Weeks

Gov. Pat Quinn won't launch his so-called grassroots campaign on pension reform until the middle of next month.

Lawmakers failed to come up with plan to overhaul the system during their special session last week.

Quinn has vowed to push ahead and ``activate the public.'' He says the state's unfunded pension liability is roughly $85 billion and growing by about $12.6 million a day.

However, Quinn said Tuesday at an unrelated event in Chicago that his public campaign is under development and he will wait until after the Republican and Democratic national conventions are over. He says he doesn't want his message to get lost.

Credit rating agencies have threatened to lower Illinois' rating unless lawmakers act. Quinn says his office has been in touch with the agencies.