Metro East Sun

Former state school employee Carol Harms, who retired in May 2016, saved $174,304 toward a pension over 34 years working for public schools, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Harms would collect as much as $4.6 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Metro East Sun.

The projection assumes Harms received $96,737 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Harms will have already received $196,376 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.