Chicago City Wire

Former state university employee Debra Palmer, who retired in January 2016, saved $35,463 toward a pension over 17 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Palmer would collect as much as $583,219, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Palmer received $12,258 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Palmer will have already received $37,889 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.