Chicago City Wire

Former state university employee Daniel Cook, who retired in February 2016, saved $45,034 toward a pension over 9 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Cook would collect as much as $826,716, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Cook received $17,376 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Cook will have already received $53,707 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.