McLean County Times

Former state school employee Betty Gantzert, who retired in June 2016, saved $96,895 toward a pension over 21 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Gantzert would collect as much as $1.61 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes McLean County Times.

The projection assumes Gantzert received $33,740 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Gantzert will have already received $104,287 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.