Lake County Gazette

Former state school employee Denise Rattigan, who retired in June 2016, saved $165,271 toward a pension over 29 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Rattigan would collect as much as $2.86 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Lake County Gazette.

The projection assumes Rattigan received $60,111 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Rattigan will have already received $185,796 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.