Chicago City Wire

Former state university employee Donna Hilburger Lazzara, who retired in March 2019, saved $93,175 toward a pension over 34 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Hilburger Lazzara would collect as much as $2.03 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Hilburger Lazzara received $42,636 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Hilburger Lazzara will have already received $131,783 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.