Illinois Valley Times

Former state school employee Cynthia Gunderson Komater, who retired in May 2016, saved $79,452 toward a pension over 19 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Gunderson Komater would collect as much as $1.28 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Illinois Valley Times.

The projection assumes Gunderson Komater received $26,821 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Gunderson Komater will have already received $82,902 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.