The Nation - News from Dec. 5, 1988

East St. Louis, Ill., already unable to pay its employees on time or afford cleaning supplies for City Hall, now is threatened with the loss of its share of state sales and income tax revenue. The city was notified that it is $3.1 million in debt to a public employees pension program, the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, and Jack Edman, director of legal affairs for the fund, said it is entitled to recover the back payments by having money deducted from tax revenue due the city. Loss of the tax money would be a devastating blow to the city, because the income and sales taxes provide about $2.5 million of its $6.8-million budget for this year. The city suffers from an eroded industrial and commercial tax base as well as a predominantly poor minority population.