July 18

by Jon Hilkevitch

A state review gave the Chicago Transit Authority the go-ahead Thursday to issue bonds to provide funding for the CTA employee retirement and retiree health-care plans.

The action follows legislative approval in January of a sales tax increase to fund operations at Chicago-area transit agencies and allow the CTA to issue about $2 billion in bonds to rescue its troubled pension and retiree health-care trust.

The report issued Thursday by Illinois Auditor General William Holland found that the CTA and the boards for the agency's pension and retiree health care plans provided the required reports for review. The report did not constitute an audit, Holland said.

It provides approval for the CTA to issue bonds starting within 120 days as a solution to its under-funded retirement and retiree health-care systems.